HEARINGS 

BEFORE  THE 

COMMITTEE  ON  FOREIGN  AFFAIRS 

HOUSE  OF  KEPRESENTATTVES 

SIXTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS 
THIRD  SESSION 

ON 

H.  J.  RES.  357* 

REQUESTING  THE  COMMISSIONERS  PLENIPOTENTIARY  OF 
THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA  TO  THE  INTERNATIONAL 
PEACE  CONFERENCE  TO  PRESENT  TO  THE  SAID  CONFER- 
ENCE THE  RIGHT  OF  IRELAND  TO  FREEDOM,  INDE- 
PENDENCE, AND  SELF-DETERMINATION 


DECEMBER  12,  1918 


WASHINGTON 
GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFPICfl 
1919 


BOSTON  COLLEqe  LI  BR 

CHLSTiVUT  HILL,  MA, 


1^  a, 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION. 

2165 

Committee  ox  Foreign  Affairs, 

House  of  Representatives, 
Thursday,  December  12, 1918. 
The  committee  met  at  10  o'clock  a.  m.,  Hon.  Henry  D.  Flood  (chair- 
man) presiding. 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  has  met  this  morning  for  the  pur- 
pose of  considering  House  joint  resolution  357.  introduced  by  Mr- 
Gallagher,  of  Illinois,  and  other  resolutions  which  have  been  referred 
to  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  relative  to  the  Irish  question. 

I  understand  there  are  quite  a  number  of  ladies  and  gentlemen  here 
from  different  points  in  the  country  who  want  to  be  heard  on  the  reso- 
lutions, and  I  will  be  glad  if  some  gentleman  who  represents  some  of 
these  committees  or  delegations  would  indicate  whether  he  knows  how 
many  there  are  to  be  heard,  so  Ave  can  arrange  to  apportion  the  time. 
The  committee  decided  to  give  four  hours  to  hearing  various  persons 
on  these  resolutions.  We  would  like  to  apportion  the  time  in  a 
manner  agreeable  to  those  who  have  come  to  be  heard. 

In  addition  to  the  visiting  delegates  there  are  a  number  of  Members 
of  Congress,  who  have  introduced  resolutions  of  a  similar  import, 
who  would  probably  like  to  be  heard  on  their  particular  resolutions. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  THOMAS  GALLAGHER,  A  REPRESENTATIVE 
IN  CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee, 
House  joint  resolution  357  is  simply  an  amended  resolution  which 
was  introduced  b}^  me  in  the  House  about  two  years  ago.  requesting 
the  commissioners  at  the  Peace  Conference  to  take  up  the  question  of 
Irish  freedom  and  self-determination. 

As  a  result  of  the  introduction  of  that  resolution  quite  an  agitation 
has  gone  over  the  country  urging  legislative  action  upon  the  resolu- 
tion. A  great  convention  was  held  in  New  York  City  last  spring, 
with  delegates  present  from  every  section  of  the  United  States.  They 
sent  a  committee  here  in  August — the  Mother's  Mission,  representing 
the  tens  of  thousands  of  Irish-American  mothers  who  had  sons  in 
the  American  Army — to  present  to  Congress  a  petition  signed  by  some 
600.000  American  citizens  asking  for  action  on  that  resolution. 

I  presented  the  petition  to  Congress,  and  it  was  referred  to  your 
committee.  Since  that  time  I  have  introduced  House  joint  resolution 
357.  which  is  the  original  resolution  amended  to  meet  present  condi- 
tions, and  I  want  to  thank  the  committee  for  giving  us  a  hearing  on  it. 

We  have  large  delegations  from  different  sections  of  the  United 
States  here  this  morning.  They  have  come  long  distances,  and  have 
been  unable  to  get  together  and  formulate  the  program.   That  must 

3 


4 


THE  [RISB  QUESTION. 


develop  at  this  bearing.  We  have  l'O  here  from  Chicago  alone,  and 
there  arc  other  men  and  WOmen  from  every  section  of  the  country. 
Of  course,  we  air  anxious  to  give  all  of  these  delegations  a  chance  to 
be  heard  upon  (he  resolutions. 

Likewise  there  are  a  number  of  other  resolutions  which  have  been 
introduced  in  Congress  bearing  upon  the  subject  of  a  free  Ireland, 
and  the  introducers  of  those  resolutions  may  want  to  put  their  views 
before  the  committee  also.  So,  in  order  to  develop  some  kind  of  a 
program  by  which  we  can  have  concerted  action  and  use  a-  little  time 
as  may  be  necessary  to  place  the  matter  properly  before  the  com- 
mit tee.  I  am  willing  to  consider  any  suggestions  that  may  be  made  as 
to  the  formulation  of  a  program. 

I  want  to  say  this:  That  in  accordance  with  the  organized  effort 
of  the  people  who  are  behind  my  resolution — and  there  is  a  large 
organized  effort  all  over  the  country,  in  all  the  large  cities,  and 
throughout  the  whole  country  generally — former  Congressman  Gor- 
man, who  is  here  as  the  head  of  the  committee  from  Chicago,  has 
conferred  with  the  New  York  delegation  and  other  delegations,  and 
he  may  have  some  suggestions  to  make  by  which  we  can  formulate  a 
plan  for  presenting  our  views  on  this  subject. 

Mr.  McLaughlin.  Mr.  Kennedy,  Mr.  Lundecn.  and  a  number  of 
others  who  have  presented  resolutions,  will  doubtless  desire  to  be 
heard.  At  the  same  time,  I  want  to  suggest  to  the  chairman  of  the 
committee  that  several  other  Members  of  Congress  may  want  to  have 
something  to  say  or  to  place  in  this  record  with  regard  to  the  subject 
under  discussion,  and  I  would  ask  for  them  the  privilege  of  having 
their  views  printed,  if  they  have  not  sufficient  time  to  present  them 
verbally. 

The  Chairman.  That  permission  will  be  granted.  In  addition  to 
the  organization  from  Chicago,  represented  by  ex- Congressman 
Gorman,  there  are  also  representatives  from  New  York:  Boston: 
Philadelphia;  Cleveland;  Pittsburgh:  Providence,  R.  L:  Oswego, 
X.  Y. :  Syracuse.  X.  Y. ;  South  Bend,  Ind. :  Indianapolis,  Ind.:  Mon- 
tana: Kentucky;  St.  Louis;  New  Jersey:  St.  Paul,  Minn.:  Connecti- 
cut: Lowell,  Mass.:  Wichita.  Kans. ;  St.  Augustine.  Fla.:  Westfield, 
Mass.;  Pittsfield,  Mass.;  Springfield.  Mass.:  Baltimore:  Washing- 
ton, D.  C. :  Seattle;  North  Carolina;  Missouri:  Wisconsin:  North 
Dakota;  Springfield.  Ohio:  and  New  Roehelle,  N.  Y.  That  makes 
32  delegations. 

There  are  a  number  of  Members  of  Congress  who  have  introduced 
resolutions  who  might  want  time. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Since  the  committee  has  limited  the  hearing  to  four 
hours,  according  to  a  motion  agreed  to  by  the  committee,  wTould  it 
not  be  a  good  idea  to  find  out  how  many  intend  to  be  heard,  and  then 
it  would  be  possible  to  apportion  the  time? 

The  Chairman.  There  is  a  suggestion  that  we  proceed  to-day,  and 
that  after  we  adjourn  to-day  that  the  various  delegations  get  together 
and  make  an  arrangement  in  regard  to  the  apportioning  of  time  to 
various  speakers.  Then  if  it  is  found  that  the  time  allotted  is  short, 
we  will  give  you  more  time.  Suppose  we  first  hear  Mr.  Gorman  and 
then  some  one  else,  and  after  we  adjourn  to-day  the  various  organi- 
zation- can  get  together  and  apportion  the  time  and  select  spokesmen. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


5 


Mr.  Gorman.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  think  all  the  delegates  here  are 
unanimous  on  what  they  are  seeking.  I  do  not  think  all  the  delega- 
tions will  want  to  be  heard. 

I  understand  there  are  a  number  of  Members  of  Congress  who  have 
introduced  resolutions  similar  to  the  one  now  before  the  committee. 

The  Chairman.  Nine  or  ten. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Suppose  the  committee  devote  such  time  as  may  be 
necessary7  this  morning  to  hearing  the  Members  of  Congress  on  their 
respective  resolutions,  and  then  when  you  adjourn,  after  the  Members 
of  Congress  have  discussed  their  resolutions,  we  may  be  permitted  to 
use  this  room  for  a  meeting  at  which  we  will  determine  just  how 
many  speakers  we  care  to  have  discuss  the  matter  before  the  com- 
mittee. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  AMBROSE  KENNEDY,  A  REPRESENTATIVE 
IN  CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  RHODE  ISLAND. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Mr.  Chairman,  being  a  member  of  the  Committee 
on  Foreign  Affairs.  I  am  perfectly  willing  to  extend  any  time  that 
might  be  given  me  to  those  who  have  come  here  to  be  heard  on  these 
resolutions. 

Briefly,  however.  I  will  state  that  the  resolutions  before  the  com- 
mittee are  substantially  similar:  they  differ  only  in  phraseology. 
All  these  resolutions  now  before  us  propose  that  the  doctrine  of  self- 
determination  shall  be  applied  to  the  settlement  of  the  Irish  ques- 
tion. But  the  resolution  which  I  personally  introduced  differs  from 
all  the  other  resolutions  in  that  it  provides  a  way  of  ascertaining  the 
will  of  the  people  of  Ireland  with  respect  to  the  form  or  system  of 
government  they  may  desire.  It  provides  that  the  doctrine  of  self- 
determination  shall  be  applied  by  giving  that  people  the  right  to 
decide  freely  and  fully  for  themselves  by  vote  of  a  majority,  expressed 
through  a  plebiscite,  the  political  system  under  which  they  shall  be 
governed.  This  is  the  element  of  difference  between  1113^  resolution 
and  the  other  resolutions  which  have  been  introduced  on  this  subject. 

In  reading  the  New  York  Times  yesterday  I  noticed  that  a  great 
mass  meeting  was  held  on  Tuesday  evening  in  New  York  composed 
of  25,000  people  or  more  at  which  the  following  resolution  was  passed 
and  transmitted  to  the  President  of  the  United  States  on  his  journey 
across  the  seas: 

Therefore,  we  respectfully  but  earnestly  urge  that  our  President  declare  at 
the  peace  congress  that  the  people  of  Ireland  should,  as  a  matter  of  right  and 
justice,  be  governed  only  in  accordance  with  their  consent  and  that  the  will  of 
the  majority,  ascertained  by  a  plebiscite  of  the  adult  population,  be  accepted 
as  the  sovereign  will  of  the  people  instead  of  the  present  foreign  rule  by  force. 

The  resolution  which  I  introduced  several  days  ago  on  the  question 
of  self-determination  for  Ireland  is  somewhat  similar  in  character 
to  one  which  I  offered  during  the  last  session  of  Congress,  and  I 
desire  to  call  the  attention  of  this  committee  and  this  audience  here 
assembled  to  the  fact  that,  just  like  the  resolution  so  recently  adopted 
at  the  great  mass  meeting  in  New  York  City,  it  provides  that  the  will 
of  the  Irish  people  shall  be  expressed  through  a  plebiscite.  It  is 
altogether  obvious  that  a  plebiscite  of  the  entire  adult  population  of 
Ireland  would  furnish  the  most  complete  and  authorized  expression 
of  the  national  will. 


G 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  world  has  been  led  to  understand  that  the  principle  of  self- 
determination  is  to  be  applied  at  the  peace  conference  in  accordance 
with  the  views  so  often  enunciated  by  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  and,  this  being  the  case,  I  believe  it  should  be  done  without 
reserve  or  limitation.   A  fundamental  principle  knows  no  distinction 

of  nations.  Therefore,  Ireland,  as  well  as  other  small  nations,  should 
he  included  in  the  application  of  the  principle.  The  proposition  is 
one  of  extending  justice  to  all,  now  that  the  peace  of  the  world  is  to 
be  finally  settled  upon  the. tested  foundations  of  political  liberty. 

Mr.  Chairman,  not  desiring  to  further  encroach  upon  the  time  of 
those  who  are  here  to  he  heard,  I  shall  reserve  any  further  remarks 
until  the  committee  assembles  to  consider  these  resolutions. 

The  Chairman.  Mr.  Gorman,  1  think  you  had  better  proceed. 

Mr.  Gorman.  The  Chicago  delegation,  coming  down  on  the  train 
last  night,  arranged  that  I  was  to  speak  myself  and  designate  some 
members  of  the  committee — Judge  Scanlan.  Judge  Barrett,  Rev. 
F.  X.  McCabe,  president  of  I)e  Paul  University — to  present  their 
views  to  the  committee  cn  the  subject . 

The  Chaibman.  Win  m  do  you  desire  to  be  heard  first  3 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  will  call  on  Judge  Scanlan  to  speak. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  KICKHAM  SCANLAN,  JUDGE  OF  THE  CIR- 
CUIT COURT  OF  COOK  COUNTY.  CHICAGO,  ILL. 

Judge  Scanlan.  About  IS  rnonths  ago  this  committee  of  ours 
appeared  before  your  body  and  asked  you  at  that  time  if  you  would 
favor  a  resolution  which  is  in  accord  with  the  one  we  are  now  speak- 
ing about,  You  gave  us  a  two  days'  hearing  at  that  time.  You 
remember  we  bothered  you  quite  a  little  at  the  time  we  were  here 
before.  You  probably  thought  we  were  rather  troublesome  in  those 
war  days.  But  you  gave  us  the  word  at  that  time  that  a  resolution 
like  the  one  we  wished  adopted  was  not  a  prudent  one,  that  it  must 
bide  its  time.   And  we  went  away,  Mr.  Chairman. 

We  went  back  to  Chicago  and  we  kept  the  faith.  From  that  day 
until  two  weeks  ago  the  committee  of  one  hundred  never  did  a 
solitary  thing  in  the  way  of  urging  Congress  or  forcing  its  resolu- 
tion on  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

They  stepped  into  the  ranks,  like  good  American  citizens,  and 
they  gave  their  all  for  this  country,  because  when  all  is  said  and 
done  a  man  of  Irish  ancestry  could  not  do  anything  else  for  America. 
He  might  grieve  about  the  condition  of  Ireland  and  he  might  have 
the  old-time  sentiment  about  marching  in  the  ranks  and  saving 
England,  but  he  was  an  American  first,  last,  and  all  the  time. 

The  Irish  helped  to  make  America  in  1776.  The  British  Parlia- 
ment said  that  but  for  the  aid  of  the  people  of  Ireland  the  freedom 
of  America  would  not  have  been  Avon.  And  in  every  war  from  that 
day  to  this  they  have  stood  by  America,  and  they  stood  by  America 
to  a  man  in  the  last  war.  Do  not  let  any  paper,  do  not  let  any 
propaganda  in  the  world,  ever  make  any  member  of  this  committee 
think  that  there  was  any  man  of  Irish  blood  in  America  who  could 
dream  for  one  moment  of  anything  but  the  success  of  America. 
We  kept  the  faith. 

Now,  the  nations  have  signed  the  armistice  and  we  are  here  again. 
I  am  reminded  of  the  saying  of  an  old  schoolmaster  at  Xotre  Dame, 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


7 


who  taught  me  arithmetic  and  geometry,  of  the  difficulty  of  under- 
taking to  prove  an  axiom.  That  is  what  we  are  here  to-day  for. 
TVe  are  standing  before  a  committee  of  Congress — men  and  women 
from  all  over  the  United  States — and  we  are  undertaking  to  demon- 
strate an  axiom. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  A  -elf -evident  proposition  \ 

Judge  Scan  lax.  A  self-evident  proposition.  Can  you  give  any 
set  of  men  in  the  world  a  harder  proposition  than  that  \  T\ mat  did 
our  President  justify  our  going  into  the  war  f or  \  We  were  a  peace- 
loving  people.  We  had  been  taught,  generation  after  generation, 
not  to  interfere  with  European  affairs,  and  yet  the  day  came  when 
we  had  to.  and  our  great  President,  who  has  gone  over  the  seas  to 
see  the  right  thing  done,  says  this  was  a  war  for  the  small  nations, 
that  this  was  a  war  for  justice,  that  this  was  a  war  to  -ettle  ques- 
tions that  had  been  disturbing  the  peace  of  the  world  century  after 
century.  What  did  our  great  President  say  -ix  or  seven  weeks  ago  ? 
He  said  that  at  the  peace  table  eternal  justice  may  demand  that 
our  allies  as  well  as  foes  shall  concede  things  in  order  that  the  rights 
of  the  nations  of  the  world  may  be  properly  determined.  You  are 
going  to  free  the  Poles :  thank  God  for  that.  Irish- Americans  rejoice 
at  that.  You  are  going  to  free  the  Bohemians :  thank  God  for  that. 
You  are  going  to  free  all  these  other  nations :  thank  God  for  it. 
Then,  in  the  name  of  God.  how  can  they  have  a  voice  for  the  pur- 
pose of  determining  what  the  right-  are  in  settling  these  things  and 
leave  the  nation  that  has  been  longest  in  bondage  still  in  slavery  I 

Ireland  was  a  nation  when  the  other  great  nations  of  Europe 
vrere  not  civilized.  Ireland  never  fought  an  aggressive  war  against 
any  nation  in  the  world.  Study  her  history,  gentlemen.  Neve? 
once  did  she  assail  another  nation,  and  it  is  recorded  in  the  ancient 
books  that  she  was,  centuries  ago.  perhaps  the  strongest  nation  in 
Europe.  Do  you  remember  how  she  drove  the  Romans  back  to  the 
Alps  in  defeme  of  Scotland  and  England,  and  after  she  drove  them 
back  to  the  Alps  she  returned  to  Ireland. 

Ireland  never  persecuted  any  creed  in  the  world.  Do  not  let  that 
poison  enter  into  your  souls.  Ireland  never  persecuted  any  creed 
in  the  world.  That  is  the  history  of  Ireland,  and  whenever  men 
were  persecuted  in  Europe  in  the  old  days  there  was  one  land  where 
they  could  go  and  worship  God  as  they  saw  fit.  and  that  was  Ireland. 
Ireland  was  the  only  nation  in  Europe  that  never  persecuted  the 
Jew.  Now  they  tell  us  to-day.  in  order  to  muddy  the  waters,  that 
Ireland  can  not  be  relied  upon  in  that  regard  as  a  free  nation. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  In  speaking  of  self-government,  what  friction,  if 
any.  would  follow  between  Ulster  and  southern  Ireland? 

Judge  Scanlan.  Xone  at  all.  Let  me  tell  you  something.  You 
have  heard  of  the  rebellion  of  1793  in  Ireland.  All  the  great  leaders 
in  that  rebellion  were  Protestants.  The  English  hanged  them  by  the 
dozen.  Robert  Emmet.  Lord  Edward  Fitzgerald,  and  others*  that 
were  Protestants  sacrificed  their  lives. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Robert  Emmet  was  a  Protectant ! 

Judge  Scanlan.  Yes.  sir:  and  Fitzgerald  was  a  Protestant  and 
Wolfe  Tone  was  a  Protestant,  and  Bagenal  Harvey  was  a  Protestant. 
Their  names  are  emblazoned  in  the  hearts  of  Irishmen.  Every  time 
that  the  Irish  had  to  choose  a  leader  within  the  last  century 'and  a 


8 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


half,  instead  of  selecting  a  Catholic  to  lead  them  they  selected  a 
Protestant,  with  two  notable  exceptions,  and  the  Protestants  of  Ire- 
land have  died  by  the  hundreds  and  thousands  for  nationality's  sake. 

Mr.  CrOOOWTN.  What  is  the  ratio  of  population  between  the  two? 

Judge  ScANLAN.  Three  to  one.  I  >ut  it  does  not  make  any  difference. 
Do  not  allow  that  to  disturb  you  for  a  moment.  You  hear  a  good 
deal  about  the  Ulster  question,  and  yet  we  have  a  majority  in  Par- 
liament! from  that  Protestant  district  of  Ireland  who  stand  out  for 
Irish  nationality. 

Mr.  ftflLLEB.  By  that  you  mean  those  in  favor  of  home  rule? 

Judge  S<  am, an.  You  have  got  to  be  very  careful  how  you  use  those 
terms,  1  may  say,  personally,  that  if  the  Irish  ever  agree  by  a  ma- 
jority vote  that  they  are  willing  to  have  British  home  rule,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  that  for  many  generations  back  our  family  have  been  in 
America,  that  we  have  died  on  the  scaffold  or  in  jail  fighting  for 
Irish  nationality,  when  they  agree  to  accept  British  home  rule  I  am 
through  with  Ireland.  When  any  nation  surrenders  its  nationality 
it  is  gone,  and  that  is  what  has  kept  the  Irish  through  750  years  of 
persecut  ion,  and  if  you  men  knew  about  it  as  we  know  about  it  you 
would  feel  as  we  do.  Do  you  know  that  at  one  time  in  the  history  of 
Ireland  her  population  was  reduced  to  the  vanishing  point  by  the 
sword  and  by  carnage  and  by  slaughter?  But  the  virtue  of  the 
women  of  Ireland  has  spared  us  through  all  the  generation^:  they 
repopulated  Ireland,  and  in  the  providence  of  God  they  are  going  to 
repopulate  it  again. 

You  ask  me  why,  as  an  Irsh- American,  I  am  here  demanding  self- 
determination  for  Ireland.  That  is  the  blood  that  is  in  me,  and  I  do 
not  want  my  girls,  who  have  been  in  the  canteen  service  all  through 
this  war,  to  stand  out  in  the  days  to  come  and  say  that  at  the  peace 
conference  they  said  that  all  nations  should  be  free  but  the  Irish. 
They  say  that  the  Czecho-Slavs,  the  Jugo-Slavs,  and  all  these  other 
nationalites  shall  be  given  their  freedom,  and  the  race  that  has  gone 
out  from  one  end  of  the  world  to  the  other,  and  kept  the  banner  of 
freedom  flying  wherever  they  have  gone,  that  that  race  shall  be 
condemned  forever  to  slavery. 

We  are  approaching  the  end,  and  God  Almighty  has  struck  the 
hour,  and  the  question  is  now,  when  we  close  this  book.  What  will  be 
the  voice  of  America  on  this  question? 

Y^ou  sent  your  boys  over  there  to  do  what  ?  They  are  coming  back 
now  through  Chicago  by  the  trainloads,  and  my  girls  are  canteening 
them  day  after  day,  and  they  are  coming  home  with  tears  in  their 
eyes,  and  telling  us  that  the  injured  men  who  are  coming  back  say, 
u  Thank  God  we  were  in  this  great  war;  thank  God  we  were  in  the 
war  that  settled  for  all  time  the  freedom  of  the  races."  And  they  are 
coming  back  happy.  Why? 

If  our  representatives  go  to  that  jDeace  conference  and  declare  that 
all  these  nations  shall  be  free  and  condemn  Ireland  to  slavery,  you 
simply  have  made  a  question  that  will  disturb  the  peace  of  the  world 
forever.   You  have  got  to  settle  this  right. 

We  are  living  in  God  Almighty's  time;  this  is  not  man's  time. 
God  Almighty  has  been  waiting,  century  after  century,  for  man  to 
do  this  right,  and  now  He  has  ordained  that  the  American  people 
shall  settle  this  thing,  the  people  who  have  nothing  to  gain  except- 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


9 


ing  right,  and  they  are  going-  to  be  the  people  who  will  settle  this 
proposition  in  Europe,  regardless  of  how  the  other  natfbns  may  feel 
about  it.  Else  we  have 'no  justification  for  our  part  in  the  war.  This 
is  the  question  you  must  speak  out  about.  You  are  doing  something 
now  that  your  children  and  their  children's  children  are  going  to  read 
about.  You  are  saying  whether  you  speak  for  free  Ireland  or  for  an 
enslaved  Ireland.  And  if  you  speak  right  it  matters  not  what  these 
other  nations  may  think  or  say.  America  that  saved  them  all, 
America  which  has  nothing  else  to  gain  except  the  establishment  of 
right,  America  will  determine  it,  and  if  you  arm  our  President,  who 
has  gone  over  there  to  tell  them  what  right  is,  he  will  come  out  of  that 
conference  with  all  the  nations  of  the  world  free. 

It  is  pretty  hard  for  me  to  speak  on  this  subject.  I  have  the  emo- 
tions of  centuries  in  my  heart,  and  all  I  can  think  of  for  the  dead 
of  my  rac  e,  those  who  died  on  the  scaffold,  and  those  who  died  in  jail. 
I  could  speak  forever  on  this  subject. 

1  beg  of  yon  to  remember  these  things  and  to  cast  your  vote  right. 
It  will  be  something  you  will  be  proud  of  to  your  dying  day.  It  is 
something  that  your  children  and  your  children's  children  will  be 
proud  of,  that  you  voted  and  you  helped  to  make  all  the  enslaved 
nations  of  the  world  free. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV,  F.  X.  McCABE,  PRESIDENT,  DE  PAUL 

UNIVERSITY. 

Kev.  F ather  McCabe.  Mr.  Chairman,  about  a  year  ago  the  com- 
mittee from  Chicago  appeared  before  you  on  the  resolution  presented 
by  Mr,  Gallagher  at  that  time,  and  we  are  here  again  practically  for 
the  same  purpose  on  the  question  of  self-determination  for  Ireland. 

We  believe  that  the  resolution  should  be  ordered  out  on  the  floor 
for  consideration  because  it  is  merely  asking  for  one  country  that 
seems  to  have  been  left  out.  the  things  that  have  been  laid  down  as 
fundamental,  for  which  our  Nation  entered  the  war — the  right  of  all 
peoples  to  live  under  the  form  of  government  that  they  would  choose. 

We  are  representing  practically  the  unanimous  thought,  not  only 
of  naturalized  Irish-born  men  and  women  in  Chicago,  descendants 
of  Irish  men  and  women  in  Chicago,  but  the  various  creeds  and  na- 
tionalities of  Chicago,  when  we.  as  the  representatives  of  the  com- 
mittee of  100,  appear  to  speak  for  the  resolution  demanding  self- 
determination  for  Ireland. 

I  think  in  this  resolution  the  right  to  freedom,  independence,  and 
self-determination  of  Ireland  covers  entirely  the  situation,  and  I 
feel  that  we  have  every  reason  as  American  citizens,  independent 
of  our  descent,  to  request  that  you  and  your  committee,  with  as  little 
delay  as  possible,  grant  our  request  that  this  resolution  may  be  taken 
out  from  the  committee  and  put  before  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States. 

The  Irish  people  have  contributed,  notwithstanding  reports  to  the 
contrary,  a  large  percentage  of  their  man  power  to  the  cause  of  the 
freedom  of  the  rest  of  the  small  nations  of  the  world  and  have  the 
right,  I  believe,  to  demand  for  themselves  what  they  have  fought  for 
for  the  whole  world.  They  have  contributed  in  funds,  by  extraordi- 
nary self-denial — I  am  speaking  of  the  Irish — they  have  contributed 


LO 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


in  funds  by  extraordinary  self-denial,  millions  of  dollars  toward 
the  pause  of* freedom.  In  our  own  country,  in  Canada,  Australia, 
practically  from  all  over  the  world,  the  Irish  born,  who  have  be- 
come citizens  of  other  countries,  have  been  as  earnest  and  as  ener- 
getic as  any  in  contributing  of  everything  that  has  made  for  success 
to  our  arms. 

The  Navy,  the  Army,  and  all  the  various  branches  of  service  of 
our  own  Nation  are  tilled  with  Irish  born,  naturalized  citizens  of 
Amerira.  and  the  descendants  of  Irish  born.  And  everyone  of  them 
went  into  the  fight  on  the  pledge  of  the  fundamental  principles  that 
had  been  enunciated,  that  this  country  was  asked  to  throw  itself, 
with  all  its  energy  and  with  all  its  power  into  the  fight  that  the  small 
nations  of  the  world  might  no  longer  be  tyrannized  over  by  any  na- 
tion, and  that  as  a  consequence  they  might  have  the  right  to  assem- 
ble and  determine  for  themselves  their  own  form  of  government  and 
pursue  life,  liberty,  and  happiness  under  governments  chosen  by 
themselves. 

When  we,  as  a  people,  after  going  before  the  world  under  the  di- 
rection of  our  Chief  Executive,  sacrificing  our  treasure,  sacrificing 
our  lives,  and  causing  anguish  and  anxieties  and  fears  and  sufferings 
to  mothers  and  fathers,  have  pledged  ourselves  to  grant  this,  our 
whole  work  of  the  last  two  years  will  be  thrown  to  the  winds,  if 
self-determination  for  Ireland  is  not  put  on  the  statute  books. 

We  want  at  the  present  time  to  Leave  nothing  after  this  peace 
conference  that  will  disturb  the  harmony  of  the  world,  and  the  Irish 
people,  who  have  fought  for  TOO  years,  suffered,  bled,  and  died  for 
the  last  TOO  years  in  a  pronounced  and  open  protest  against  a  tyranny 
that  lias  been  exercised  over  them,  (will  not  rest  until  they  have  ob- 
tained their  freedom  and  their  independence,  and  anything  that  this 
Nation  can  do.  that  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  that  the  Chief 
Executive  of  the  country,  supported  by  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  and  by  the  popular  sentiment  of  our  country,  can  do,  ought 
to  be  done,  and  ought  to  be  done  now,  and  I  feel  that  I  speak,  basing 
what  I  say  on  the  fundamental  principles  of  our  Government,  when 
I  say  that  the  people  have  an  absolute  right  to  have  .returned  to 
them  their  sovereignt}7,  and  I  feel  that  there  can  be  no  harmony  and 
no  peace  in  the  world  as  long  as  these  people  are  slave-. 

Therefore,  Mr.  Chairman,  we  ask  you  and  your  committee  to 
consider  this  resolution  and  to  consider  it  favorably,  that  it  may  go 
before  Congress  and  become  the  voice  of  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States. 

Mr.  Gorman  At  this  point  I  desire  to  inform  the  members  of  the 
Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  who  the  men  and  women  of  the 
Chicago  delegation  are  and  what  they  represent.  Mr.  Patrick  J. 
Reynolds  is  president  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  of  the 
State  of  Illinois.  Mrs.  B.  J.  Mahoney  and  Miss  Anna  Murphy  are 
representing  the  League  of  Small  Nations,  an  organization  composed 
exclusively  of  women.  Judge  George  M.  Barrett  and  Judge  Kickham 
Scanlan  are  two  of  the  most  prominent  citizens  of  Illinois  and  are 
judges  of  the  circuit  court  of  Cook  County,  [which  is  a  court  of 
unlimited  jurisdiction.  Rev.  Father  McCabe  is  president  of  I)e  Paul 
University.  Father  Cahill  is  pastor  of  one  of  the  leading  parishes  in 
Chicago.    Dr.  Murphy  is  one  of  our  distinguished  surgeons.  John 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


11 


F.  Fitzpatrick,  John  Roche,  M.  F.  Sullivan,  and  George  W.  Mc- 
Guire  represent  the  labor  interests,  the  latter  two  being  members  of 
the  bar  and  Mr.  Sullivan  an  assistant  States  attorney.  Those,  with 
myself,  represent  what  is  known  in  Chicago  as  the  Committee  of  One 
Hundred. 

This  committee  was  created  a  little  more  than  a  year  and  a  half 
ago.  and  it  represents  many  societies  in  Chicago,  the  membership  of 
which  is  composed  of  men  and  women  of  Irish  birth  or  descent. 
Since  its  organization  this  Committee  of  One  Hundred,  representing 
these  various  societies  has  been  very  active  in  promoting  the  move- 
ment for  action  on  the  part  of  Congress  to  bring  about  self-deter- 
mination for  Ireland. 

A  resolution  similar  in  tone  to  the  resolution  now  before  this 
committee  for  consideration  urging  self-determination  for  Ireland 
has  been  adopted  by  various  organizations  in  Chicago  and  through- 
out the  country,  and  to  give  the  committee  some  idea  of  the  wide- 
spread interest  and  sentiment  that  is  represented  in  this  matter  I 
might  say  that  the  week  beginning  December  8  and  ending  Decem- 
ber 15  lias  been  set  apart  by  the  National  Council  of  the  Friends  of 
trish  Freedom  as  self-determination  week.  Meetings  have  been  held 
and  will  be  held  between  now  and  next  Sunday  and  will  continue  to 
be  held  in  all  sections  of  the  country. 

On  next  Sunday  evening  one  of  the  largest  gatherings  ever  held  in 
the  city  of  Chicago  will  assemble  at  the  First  Regiment  Armory,  at 
which  the  Most  Rca\  Archbishop  Mundelein.  of  Chicago,  Avill  be  the 
presiding  officer. 

We  have  the  labor  organizations  associated  with  us,  and  they  have 
demanded  that  Ireland  be  given  the  right  of  self-determination.  At  • 
one  of  the  recent  meetings  of  the  Committee  of  One  Hundred  there 
were  a  number  of  distinguished  non-Catholic  clergymen  present,  who 
declared  themselves  as  being  strongly  in  favor  of  the  adoption  of 
such  a  resolution.  Among  those  present  on  that  occasion  I  might 
mention  the  names  of  Rev.  Dr.  Philip  Yarrow,  one  of  the  most 
prominent  non-Catholic  clergymen  in  Chicago  and  leader  of  the 
Chicago  Dry  Federation,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  P.  Brushingham. 
This  movement  is  not  confined  to  an}'  one  section  of  the  country. 
It  is  not  confined  to  men  and  women  of  Irish  birth  or  descent.  We 
are  asking  for  the  extension  to  Ireland  of  a  fundamental  American 
principle. 

We  who  have  been  taking  some  part  -in  this  movement  believe  that 
the  position  of  the  United  States  among  the  other  nations  of  the  world 
is  such  that  if  an  expression  went  forth  from  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  urging  the  peace  conference  to  apply  that  fundamental 
American  principle  to  Ireland,  or  rather  declare  to  England  that  it 
should  be  applied  to  Ireland,  that  such  representation  by  the  highest 
legislative  body  in  the  world  will  not  and  can  not  be  ignored.  We 
appeal  to  this  committee  to  recommend  this  resolution  of  Congress- 
man Gallagher  be  reported  to  the  House  with  a  favorable  recom- 
mendation, so  that  the  world  may  know  that  the  American  people, 
through  the  Congress. of  the  United  States,  insist  that  this  age-long 
controversy  between  Ireland  and  England  will  come  to  an  end,  and 
the  rights  of  Ireland  will  be  determined  as  the  President  of  the  United 
States  said  the  rights  of  all  small  nations  should  be  determined,  on 


12 


TBE  DUBS  QUESTION. 


racial  tines,  to  the  and  that  the  peace  of  the  world  may  be  made  secure 
by  reducing  to  a  minimum  the  sources  of  controversy  that  have  here- 
tofore existed. 

Mr.  Milleb.  I  have  been  wondering  what  the  population  of  Ireland 
i>  at  the  present  time. 

Mr.  GorMAN.  It  is  four  and  one-half  million. 

Mr.  Mi i.ri.];.  And,  further,  could  you  give  us  any  idea  as  to  the  kind 
of  Government  Ireland  might  establish  for  herself  if  this  principle 
should  he  applied  ? 

Mr.  Gorman.  That  would  only  he  my  personal  view  on  the  matter. 

Mr.  MlLLER.  I  understand  that. 

Mr.  Gorman!  My  impression  is  that  if  Ireland  be  given  the  right 
of  self-determination  she  will  in  all  probability  follow  the  shining 
example  of  our  own  Government  and  adopt  a  government  similar  to 
that  of  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Miller.  It  would  be  a  Government  separate  and  apart  from 
the  British  Empire? 

Mi-.  GORMAN.  I  have  no  doubt  that  such  would  be  the  desire  of 
the  Irish  people. 

Mr.  Miller.  I  had  in  mind  that  possibly  some  scheme  w  as  in  view 
of  a  combination  between  the  two  for  mutual  protection,  whereby 
i  be  fleet  of  one  might  be  utilized  for  the  protection  of  both. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Such  a  scheme  as  that  might  be  worked  out.  I  have 
heard  it  said  that  the  British  fleet  has  been  guarding  our  shores  very 
vigorously,  and  it  might  be  that  it  would  with  the  same  vigor  guard 
the  shores  of  Ireland  until  such  time  as  Ireland,  under  its  own  gov- 
ernment, could  develop  a  fleet  of  its  own.  There  was  a  time  in  the 
history  of  Ireland  when  she  did  have  a  fleet. 

Mr.  Miller.  You  would  not  recommend  that  both  Ireland  and 
Great  Britain  should  both  have  a  big  fleet  on  the  high  seas,  would 
you  i    They  might  be  fighting  all  the  time. 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  think  if  the  principle  of  the  freedom  of  the  seas  is 
adopted  there  would  not  be  any  need  for  that. 

Air.  Goodwin.  In  that  event,  could  you  imagine  any  nation  having 
the  temerity  to  attack  Ireland? 

Mr.  Gorman.  Under  proper  international  guarantees  Ireland 
Would  be  immune  from  attack. 

The  Chairman.  Can  you  tell  us  what  the  population  was  70  years 
ago? 

Judge  Scanlan.  It  was  over  eight  million  70  years  ago. 
The  Chairman.  Is  that  about  the  time  the  corn  laws  of  England 
went  into  effect? 
Judge  Scanlan.  Yes. 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  may  say.  Mr.  Chairman,  that  Ave  have  brought 
literature  on  the  subject  of  the  revenues  of  Ireland,  its  expenditures, 
and  its  population,  and  I  would  be  glad  to  leave  that  with  the  mem- 
bers of  the  committee.  It  would  enlighten  the  committee  in  regard 
to  some  questions  which  they  would  be  likely  to  ask. 

The  Chairman.  The  population  now  is  one-half  what  it  was  in 
1830? 

Judge  Scanlan.  Yes. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


13 


STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JOSEPH  McLAUGHLIN,  A  REPRESENTATIVE 
IN  CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  PENNSYLVANIA. 

Mr.  McLaughlin.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  have  introduced  on  this  sub- 
ject House  joint  resolution  No.  127,  directing  the  President  and  the 
Secretary  of  State  to  make  such  representations  to  Great  Britain  as 
shall  result  in  the  establishing  of  a  government  for  Ireland  similar  to 
that  in  Canada.    The  resolution  says: 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representative*  of  the  United  States- 
of  America  in  Congress  assembled.  That  the  President  and  the  Secretary  of 
State  be.  and  are  hereby,  directed  t<>  make  such  representations  to  Great  Britain 
as  shall  result  in  the  establishment  of  a  government  in  Ireland  similar  to  the 
government  that  now  exists  in  Canada,  with  full  ri.sht  to  enact  such  legislation 
as  will  promote  the  prosperity  of  the  country,  adequately  develop  its  resources, 
and  safeguard  the  rights,  the  liberties,  and  the  interests  of  its  people. 

I  have  no  desire  to  take  up  too  much  of  the  time  of  the  committee 
this  morning.  But  I  think  we  should  divide  the  time.  There  are 
few  men,  I  think,  who  have  much  better  right  to  speak  for  the  Irish 
in  Ireland  than  I  have.  I  have  had  the  distinction  of  living  21  years 
11  months  and  2  days  in  that  country,  so  that  I  know  it  personally 
fairly  well.  I  know  the  objections  the  Irish  there  have  to  living  un- 
der English  laws.  It  is  reasonable  that  a  people  who  have  fought  for 
freedom  in  every  part  of  the  world  should  believe  that  they  should 
have  freedom,  and  if  this  war  has  been  for  the  freedom  of  small  na- 
tions and  for  a  world  democracy,  how  can  they  select  out  the  one  lone 
country  that  has  been  the  longest  persecuted  and  the  longest  under  a 
form  of  government  which  they  have  resented  for  over  TOO  years 
and  not  make  it  free? 

Xow,  Mr.  Chairman.  I  am  the  Xational  President  of  the  largest  rep- 
resentative organization  of  the  Irish-Americans  on  this  continent, 
with  a  membership  of  over  250.000.  They  are  a  unit  in  asking  for 
self-determination  for  Ireland.  Our  national  officers  and  our  board 
of  directors  met  here  one  week  ago.  Xo  dissenting  voice  on  that 
board  was  heard  on  this  question,  and  I  beseech  this  committee  to 
report  any  one  of  the  resolutions  to  the  House — I  care  not  whether  it 
is  the  McLaughlin  resolution  or  any  other  resolution.  What  we 
want  is  justice.  We  want  the  same  rights  for  the  Irish  people  in  Ire- 
land as  we  want  for  any  other  people,  and  I  am  satisfied  that  this 
committee  will  grant  that  right. 

I  would  like  to  have  about  15  minutes  of  the  next  meeting  of  the 
committee  to  speak  on  the  resolution  I  introduced.  There  are  two 
other  gentlemen  here  whom  I  would  like  to  refer  to.  There  is  no 
religious  prejudice  in  us.  I  am  from  the  north  of  Ireland,  which  you 
can  readily  understand  by  my  accent.  There  is  not  such  a  condition 
in  the  north  of  Ireland  along  religious  lines  as  has  been  claimed.  It 
is  only  those  who  enjoy  special  privileges  from  the  English  Govern- 
ment who  try  to  create  this  distinction. 

The  best  evidence  in  the  world  is  the  fact  that  the  nine  northern 
counties,  which  they  call  Ulster,  are  sending  a  majority  of  National 
members  to  the  British  Parliament. 

There  is -a  gentleman  here  from  Louisville,  Ky.,  whom  I  want  the 
committee  to  hear,  who  is  a  Presbyterian,  and  who  has  two  brothers 
who  are  Presbyterian  clergymen  in  the  north  of  Ireland.  They  are 
neighbors  of  mine,  and  they  were  all  very  liberal  in  their  views. 


14 


the:  iki>ii  question. 


I  do  beseech  you,  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  to  report  this  reso- 
lution to  the  House.  1  know  your  voto  will  be  ;i  just  vote,  and  I  feel 
sure  that  it  will  be  a  unanimous  vote,  so  that  this  important  issue 
may  come  before  the  American  Congress. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  RICHARD  F.  DALTON,  OF  NEW  YORK,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  D ALTON.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
appear  here  representing  the  United  Irish-American  Societies  of  New 
York,  which,  in  its  membership,  represents  all  of  the  Irish  and  Irish- 
American  organizations  in  New  York. 

I  appeal-  here  as  the  chairman  of  the  committee  w7hich  arranged 
for  the  Madison  Square  Garden  meeting  a  few  nights  ago,  the  great- 
est meeting  that  has  been  held  in  New  York  since  Bryan  spoke  at  that 
historical  meeting  of  his.  On  behalf  of  those  people  who  expressed 
their  interest  at  Madison  Square  Garden  and  on  the  streets  around 
it — because  all  those  who  desired  it  could  not  secure  admission  to 
Madison  Square  Garden — I  ask  to  make  a  part  of  the  record  the 
speech  of  Cardinal  O'Connell.  of  Boston,  delivered  at  that  meeting 
in  \ew  York. 

The  Chairman.  Without  objection,  that  may  be  admitted  to  the 
record. 

ADDRESS    BY    HIS    EMINENCE,    CARDINAL   oVoN NELL,    AT    MADISON    SQUARE  GARDEN, 
NEW  YORK  CITY,  DEC.  10,  191S. 

hi  finally  yielding  to  the  repeated  urgent  invitations  of  your  committee  to 
be  present  here  at  this  significant  meeting  to-night  I  have  listened  to  the 
voice  of  duty  alone. 

As  the  ease  was  presented  to  me  it  became  clear  to  my  mind  that  to  stay 
away  would  he  tantamount  to  the  evasion  of  a  grave  obligation  to  my  faith,  my 
country,  and  my  race. 

When  the  voice  of  that  sacred  trinity  of  motives  calls,  no  man  with  a 
Christian  conscience  can  refuse  to  rise  and  follow  it,  no  matter  what  the  cost 
or  the  sacrifice. 

T  had  to  Choose  between  convenience,  conventionality,  and  duty.  I  have 
made  my  choice,  and  here  I  stand. 

The  Irish  people  through  all  the  painful  vicissitudes  of  their  history  have 
been  faithful,  as  no  other  people  in  all  the  world,  to  the  Christian  faith.  The 
must  Christinn  country  in  all  the  world  to-day,  according  to  the  testimony  even 
of  her  enemies,  is  Ireland. 

When  her  children,  fleeing  from  an  intolerable  condition  of  servitude  under 
a  foreign  domination  hateful  to  the  proud  spirit  of  all  freemen,  came  in  pitiable 
exile  to  these  shores  of  free  America  they  brought  with  them  the  noblest  vir- 
tues of  Christian  souls.  Where  even  to-day  would  the  Church  in  America  be  — 
for  that  matter  in  the  whole  English-speaking  world.  England  included — but  for 
the  fidelity,  the  great-heartedness,  the  unquenchable  devotion  of  the  children 
of  Erin? 

Is  it  possible  that  any  of  us  bishops  or  priests  of  America  could  ever  be  guilty 
of  forgetting  that  to  the  heroic  generosity  of  the  Irish  we  owe  such  glorious 
monuments  to  faith  as  the  superbly  beautiful  cathedral  of  this  wonderful  city, 
dedicated  to  Ireland's  patron  saint  and  erected  by  the  sacrifices  of  his  faithful 
sons  and  daughters?  What  is  true  of  this  noblest  Christian  shrine  in  America's 
greatest  city  is  equally  true  of  thousands  and  thousands  of  humbler  fanes  in 
humbler  communities  all  over  the  land. 

Can  any  of  us  among  the  Church's  leaders  ever  remain  silent  and  inactive 
when  there  is  at  stake  the  welfare  of  the  people  to  whom  we  owe  our  very  daily 
bread  and  the  roof  that  shelters  us? 

There  is  no  legitimate  limit,  no  limit  within  Christian  law,  to  which  I  and 
every  prelate  and  priest  of  America  should  not  be  glad  and  happy  to  go  when 
the  cry  of  the  long-sufferng  children  of  the  Gael  comes  to  us,  and  when  as  now, 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


15 


before  the  tribunal  of  the  whole  world,  the  sacred  cause  of  justice  to  every 
nation  and  every  people  is  to  be  given  a  public  hearing. 

It  is  because  the  people  of  Ireland  have  solemnly  kept  their  sacred  word, 
given  to  their  great  Apostle,  to  be  faithful  to  Peter's  successor  as  they  would  be 
faithful  to  Christ,  that  they  have  felt  the  heel  of  a  foreign  despot  mercilessly 
grinding  them  down'  into  the  very  dust  of  humiliation.  Yes,  let  us  say  it  frankly 
and  openly  for  it  is  the  truth,  it  is  the  fidelity  of  Ireland  to  all  she  holds  most 
sacred  which  has  been  the  chief  cause  of  her  offending. 

Are  we  whose  very  lives  are  dedicated  to  the  eternal  principle  for  which  Ire- 
land has  become  a  martyr  among  the  nations,  so  bitten  by  mere  worldly  inter- 
ests as  to  be  mute  in  this  day  when  all  the  world  of  national  wrongs  and  of 
brutal  might  is  summoned  into  court?   God  forbid! 

In  God's  name  let  us  now  speak  out  fearlessly  for  God's  cause,  for  the  cause 
of  justice  to  all,  weak  and  strong,  small  and  great,  or  let  us  be  forever  silent. 

If  we  look  back  upon  what  has  happened  during  the  last  four  years  we  shall 
see  that  conditions  hitherto  accepted  as  permanent  and  absolutely  unchangeable 
have  been  so  completely  and  entirely  transformed  that  almost  nothing  remains 
of  them  to  rem  nd  us  of  what  once  stood  as  firm  as  Gibraltar. 

It  is  ;is  if  the  elemental  forces  had  suddenly  asserted  themselves  and  had 
completely  overrun  the  earth.  The  kaleidoscope  of  the  world  has  been  shaken 
and  the  bits  of  colored  glass  in  the  child's  toy  have  rushed  into  new  combina- 
tions which  puzzle  the  eyes  of  our  brain.  One  after  another  thrones  have  been 
overturned  and  empires  have  fallen.  Disorder  has  broken  loose  upon  the 
earth,  and  unless  some  power  greater  than  the  forces  of  anarchy  prevails,  all 
Europe — all  the  world — will  be  shaken  to  the  foundations  of  c  vilization. 

The  great  war  is  over  now,  but  he  who  fancies  that  because  the  great  war 
is  over  universal  peace  will  appear  on  schedule  time  has  a  great  disillusion 
ahead  of  him.  No ;  unless  now  that  the  war  is  over,  justice  begins  her  right- 
ful re'gn  over  the  whole  earth,  there  may  be  a  momentary  lull,  but  enduring 
peace  will  not  be  attained.  It  was'  for  justice  that  humanity  fought,  and 
humanity  will  still  be  ready  to  go  on  with  even  fiercer  wars  until  justice  holds 
full  sway. 

Be  not  deceived  by  false  prophets.  Diplomacy  which  failed  so  utterly  to 
preserve  the  peace  of  the  world  will  not  succeed  alone  in  bringing  it  back. 

Underneath  the  smooth  and  cool  phrases  and  barren  formulas  of  a  diplomacy 
which  has  forgotten  its  own  purposes,  we  can  even  now  hear  the  mysterious 
stirring  of  elemental  forces  striving  urgently  to  burst  through  the  cryptic 
formularies  of  a  decadent  system,  striving  to  get  into  articulate  speech  what 
suffering  humanity  wants  to  say,  striving  with  the  impatience  of  agonizing 
multitudes  to  stop  the  babble  of  bribed  officialdom  that  honest  men  may  be 
beard,  striving  to  articulate  in  all  the  dialects  of  the  world  the  word,  which, 
beetled,  will  help- the  staggering  earth  to  recover  itself,  unheeded,  will  plunge 
the  whole  tottering  world  into  universal  anarchy. 

America  is  far  away  from  the  real  theatre  of  mighty  changes.  But  even 
America  will  not  easily  escape  a  movement  so  universal  as  now  is  visible  on 
every  horizon.  What  is  that  movement V  It  is  the  pent-up  longing  in  the 
hearts  of  a  dozen  nations  for  the  right  to  rule  themselves. 

The  doom  of  autocracy  has  already  sounded.  The  silent  millions  of  Russia, 
patient  for  centuries,  have  rushed  madly  into  the  vortex  of  revolution.  Even 
in  Germany,  which  seemed  so  content  with  itself,  a  new  force  is  pushing  out 
the  older  forms. 

Obviously,  therefore,  we  are  at  the  end  of  a  period,  and  a  new  one  is  begin- 
ning. Is  it  strange  that  when  Poland  and  Serbia  and  the  Czechs  and  the 
Slovaks  and  the  Serbs  and  the  Ukrainians  are  clamoring  for  national  rights 
and  national  recognition  that  Ireland,  for  full  seven  centuries  dominated  by  a 
foreign  rule  acquired  only  by  force  and  even  to-day  exercised  by  force,  should 
now  more  than  ever  call  upon  the  world,  but  most  of  all  upon  America,  as  the 
bountiful  mother  of  true  freedom,  to  help  her  regain  the  treasure  stolen  from 
her,  and  reinstate  her  in  full  possession  of  her  complete  liberty  ? 

If  in  the  blaze  which  the  great  war  enkindled,  various  tribes  and  families  of 
the  human  race  beheld  as  with  a  new  light  their  claim  to  separate  considera- 
tion, is  it  any  wonder  that  the  people  of  Ireland,  too.  had  even  a  clearer  and  a 
stronger  vision  of  their  age-long  inheritance? 

Ireland's  position  as  a  nation  is  nothing  new  which  the  war  has  just  succeeded 
in  creating.  Never,  since  the  day  her  crown  was  stolen,  has  she  ceased  to  claim 
it  back.  In  every  century  for  700  years,  by  protest,  by  appeal,  by  parliament, 
by  arms  when  other  means  seemed  futile,  but  in  any  event,  by  one  means  or 


L6 


l  UK   IRISH  QUKSTION. 


another  as  she  round  ii  In  her  pown-  to  rise  them,  Ireland  has  never  Called  to 
k« m*p  alive  her  own  sense  of  distinct  nationhood  and  impress  it  as  palpably  us 
conditions  would  allow  upon  ■  listening  world.  As  a  profoundly  Christian 
nation,  she  has  Clung  to  the  law  of  God  in  all  these  demonstrations  of  her 
loyalty  to  herself.  Rarely,  very  rarely  indeed,  has  siie  permitted  even  cruelty 
to  goad  her  Into  Forgetting  it. 

But  ever  and  always  every  method  she  adopted,  every  leader  who  spoke  her 

i  n  use.  every  victory  won.  every  defeat  suffered,  every  weapon  used,  every 
Strategy  designed,  ever,  and  ever,  and  ever,  the  same  ultimate  purpose  is 
Clearly  visible,  and  that  purpose  is  the  vindication  of  Ireland's  right  to  gov- 
ernment only  by  consenl  of  tho  governed. 

Thai  is  the  principle  which  ultimately  won  America's  freedom;  and  it  is 
because  America  understands  that  principle,  that  Ireland  to-day  relies  upon 
America  to  echo  it  throughout  the  world  for  Ireland's  liberty. 

Is  it  the  BolshevIkJ  only  who  now  are  to  he  acknowledged  as  free?  Is  it 
because,  being  Catholic,  the  Irish  people  repudiate  Bolshevism  that  they  are 
now  to  be  repudiated  and  their  just  claim  forgotten  and  neglected? 

Let  them  beware  in  time  who  encourage  by  their  actions  and  words  to-day 
before  the  court  of  the  world  such  dangerous  conclusions  as  these. 

Is  it  really  true  that  the  blood  of  millions  has  been  shed  that  right  alone 
should  rule  the  world,  and  that  the  monster  of  brute  force,  might,  which  in 
many  places  besides  Germany  has  dominated  the  fate  of  millions  of  human  be- 
ings, should  be  deposed  forever?    Is  that  really  true? 

Is  the  law  of  justice  to  be  honestly  applied  to  all.  or  is  it  to  be  still  merely  a 
Cloak  to  hide  indefensible,  selfish  purposes  and  to  be  dispensed  ad  libitum  as 
governments  have  the  brute  power  to  observe  or  ignore  it  as  they  like? 

Was  the  great  war  a  conflict  for  true  freedom  under  right  for  all  alike,  or  was 

ii  a  grim  hoax  played  upon  the  ingenuous  by  the  shrewd  manipulators  of  clever 
phrases? 

These  are  all  questions  which  any  man  in  the  streets  who  has  ears  can  hear 
to-day.  The  world  of  honest,  trustful  men  is  waiting  for  the  answer,  and  woe 
to  the  world  if  that  answer  be  not  honest,  frank  and  true. 

Sureh  since  the  peace  of  the  world  depends  upon  the  answer  it  is  the  solemn 
duty  of  all  of  us.  especially  of  those  of  us  whose  duty  it  is  to  hold  up  before  all 
alike  the  great  principles  of  Christian  morality  by  which  alone  mankind  can 
live,  to  speak  out  fearlessly  and  clearly,  lest  being  found  faithless  in  such  a 
world  crisis,  we  forfeit  forever  our  right  to  be  listened  to  by  honest  men. 

If  faith  is  to  survive  this  hour  of  universal  groping  and  striving,  the  men  of 
faith  must  speak.  If  they  are  silent  now,  then  whose  the  blame  if  all  faith 
perishes  from  the  earth?  Is  that,  then,  the  real  meaning  of  Malachy's  dread 
prophecy — "  religio  depopulate  "? 

The  deepest  purpose  of  this  meeting  is  that  faith  may  prevail — faith  in  gov- 
ernments, faith  in  rulers  ami  congresses,  and  all  that  set  of  divine  principles  and 
influences  and  human  agencies  by  which  the  world  is  held  in  order. 

This  war,  we  were  told  again  and  again  by  all  those  responsible  for  the  con- 
duct of  the  war,  was  for  justice  to  all,  for  the  inviolable  rights  of  small  nations, 
for  the  inalienable  right,  inherent  in  every  nation,  of  self-determination. 

The  purpose  of  this  meeting  to-night  is  very  specific.  The  war  can  be  justified 
only  by  the  universal  application  of  those  principles.  Let  that  application  begin 
with  Ireland. 

Ireland  is  the  oldest  nation  and  the  longest  sufferer.  If  these  principles  are 
not  applied  in  her  case,  no  matter  what  else  may  be  done,  there  will  be  no  com- 
plete justice,  no  genuine  sincerity  believable,  and  the  war  not  bringing  justice 
will  not  bring  peace. 

Who  was  it  who  by  the  enunciation  of  these  great  principles  united  the  peoples 
of  the  whole  suffering  earth?  It  was  our  own  President — once  Wilson  of  Amer- 
ica, now  Wilson  of  the  world.  To-morrow  he  lands  at  Brest — Brest,  the  very 
port  out  from  which  Count  Arthur  Dillon  sailed  with  his  three  thousand  Irish 
troops  to  aid  America  to  obtain  from  England  the  very  principle  of  self-deter- 
mination, which  to-day  Ireland  demands,  and  which  we  of  America,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  principles  enunciated  by  our  President,  to-day  also  are  deter- 
mined by  every  legitimate  and  lawful  and  Christian  means  to  aid  Ireland  to 
obtain.    For  Ireland  equally  with  America  fought  in  this  conflict  for  right. 

America  has  fought  in  this  war  not  for  selfish  aims.  She  has  given  her  best 
blood,  her  hardest  toil  and  her  enormous  wealth,  and  in  return  gets  not  one 
foot  of  soil,  not  a  single  material  gain.  She  has  a  right  to  demand  that  for 
which  alone  she  has  made  such  tremendous  sacrifices — justice  to  all. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


17 


Let  the  test  of  sincerity  be  Ireland.  Then  we  will  be  convinced  that  truth 
still  lives. 

Ireland  must  be  allowed  to  tell  the  world  freely  what  she  wants,  how  she 
wishes  to  be  governed.  Speak  up,  Ireland ;  make  the  world  hear  you  !  Wake 
up,  England,  for  the  world  is  watching  you ! 

May  God  grant  that  the  voice  of  Ireland  be  heard  and  that  at  last  peace,  enter- 
ing Europe  through  Ireland's  freedom,  bring  even  to  England  its  blessings  and 
its  fruits. 

I  firmly  believe  rhat  the  day  that  England  honestly  faces  her  full  duty  to 
Ireland  and  fulfills  it  faithfully,  G<Hl  will  bless  her  as  she  has  not  known  His 
blessing  for  many  centuries.  For  as  with  the  individual  soul,  so  with  the 
soid  of  a  nation — a  clear  conscience  is  the  only  door  to  happiness. 

We  want  this  honest  and  frank  expression  of  our  principles,  the  principles 
upon  which  the  stability  of  this  Nation  and  every  nation  must  now  rest,  to  be 
borne  undiluted  across  the  sea.  that  first  Ireland  may  hear  and  rejoice,  that 
England  may  hear  and  consider,  and  that  our  President  and  ;ill  those  about 
him  at  the  great  conference  of  peace  may  hear  and  heed. 

When  those  men  in  whose  hands  now  rests  the  fate  of  all  freemen  arise, 
with  their  work  for  the  welfare  of  the  world  completed,  may  one  of  the  very 
hrst  articles  of  that  treaty  of  peace  lor  all  the  world  read:  "We  meant  what 
we  said — Ireland,  like  every  other  nation,  must  be  free — one  united  Ireland, 
indivisible,  unseparnted  now  and  forever." 

And  the  children  of  the  Gael,  scattered  over  all  the  earth,  will  hear  that 
soul  stirring  message,  and  then,  moved  by  a  common  impulse,  they  will  turn 
their  faces  toward  Erin,  lift  up  their  hands  to  Heaven,  and  at  that  momeut 
of  Ireland's  triumph,  will  sing  in  unison  the  greatest  Te  Deum  that  ever  arose 
to  God. 

Mr.  Daltox.  Mr.  Chairman,  we  ask  at  this  time  for  favorable  action 
on  this  resolution  introduced  by  Mr.  Gallagher  not  entirely  as  matter 
of  favor  or  as  a  matter  of  beseeching,  but  almost.  I  might  better  say, 
as  a  matter  of  right  and  as  a  matter  of  justice,  because  to-day  when 
Ave  ask  you  to  apply  the  principles  of  self-determination  to  the  case 
of  Ireland  through  the  peace  conference,  Ave  are  doing  so  after  ap- 
plauding the  action  of  the  President  in  applying  the  principle  of 
self-determination  to  the  peoples  and  nations  against  whom  our  boys 
have  been  fighting  in  this  war.  We  have  applauded  each  time  self- 
determination  was  asked  for  the  small  nations  comprising  the  Central 
Powers,  and  to-day  we  are  asking  you  to  apply  the  principles  of  self- 
determination  to  those  who  fought  with  us. 

Mr.  Chairman,  we  are  asking  you  to  permit  the  people  of  Ireland 
to  have  the  right  of  self-determination.  "We  are  asking  that  right  for 
the  people  of  a  country  which  is  as  large  in  its  area  as  the  total  area 
of  the  States  of  Massachusetts.  Connecticut.  Vermont.  Rhode  Island, 
and  New  Hampshire  together,  which  in  1841  supported  a  population 
of  close  to  9,000,000  people.  At  each  successive  census  since  that  time 
the  population  of  the  country  has  decreased  until  to-day  it  stands  at 
4,300,000.   In  other  words,  the  population  has  been  halved. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  I  have  understood  that  out  of  a  population  of  ap- 
proximately four  and  one-half  million  in  Ireland,  that  less  than 
700,000  male  citizens  of  military  age  now  remain  in  that  country,  the 
rest  having  gone  to  newer  countries,  like  America.  Australia,  and 
Canada,  in  quest  of  freedom.    Can  you  verify  that  statement? 

Mr.  Daltox.  I  understand  that  number  is  approximately  correct. 

Judge  Scanlax.  Poland  has  given  millions  of  people  to  America, 
and  so  has  Germany,  and  so  has  Bohemia,  and  so  have  the  various 
other  countries;  but  in  spite  of  that  fact,  their  populations  to-day  are 
greater  than  they  were  50  years  ago.  The  Irish  people  love  children. 
You  do  not  have  to  be  told  about  that.  In  spite  of  the  fact  that  they 
97017—19  2 


18 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


have  given  people  to  America,  they  should  in  the  ordinary  course  of 
events  have  increased  in  population;  but,  instead  of  that,  their  popu- 
lation to-day  is  only  about  one-half  what  it  was  70  years  ago. 

Mr.  Dai/ion.  While  they  were  being  cut  in  two  in  the  past,  the 
census  of  Great  Britain  showed  at  each  10-year  period  an  increase 
in  population,  until  in  the  70  years  which  have  elapsed  the  popula- 
tion of  England.  Scotland,  and  Wales  has  doubled,  while  the  popula- 
tion of  the  adjoining  island — Ireland — has  been  halved. 

Gentlemen,  during  our  own  Revolutionary  War  the  people  of 
Ireland  were  by  our  example  rekindled  with  a  fire  which  has  broken 
out  in  each  generation  since  that  time  in  an  armed  rebellion.  In  each 
of  the  five  generations  men  have  shed  their  blood  that  Ireland 
might  be  free  of  the  foreign  yoke.  What  greater  demonstration 
could  be  given  of  the  desire  of  the  Irish  people  to  have  a  change  in 
their  form  of  government? 

But  we  <l<>  not  ask  this  committee  to  suggest  the  form  of  gov- 
ernment the  Irish  people  shall  have. 

We  ask,  in  accordance  with  the  principles  laid  down  by  President 
Wilson,  that  the  Irish  people  themselves  shall  have  the  right  to 
say  what  form  of  government  they  shall  have,  and  if  they  should 
decide,  and  I  am  sure  they  would,  upon  a  separate  and  distinct  form 
of  government,  they  would  have  a  country  with  three  times  the  area 
of  Belgium,  with  twice  the  area  of  Denmark,  and  with  twice  the 
area  of  Switzerland,  which  has  maintained  its  neutrality  through 
all  this  trouble. 

There  can  be  no  permanent  peace  in  the  world  following  the  con- 
clusion of  the  Peace  Conference,  if  those  who  have  fought  with  us, 
whose  sons  have  gone  forth  wearing  the  khaki  and  the  blue,  shall  be 
denied  the  right  of  self-determination. 

Not  only,  therefore,  as  a  matter  of  right  and  justice,  but  as  a 
matter  of  wisdom  for  mankind,  for  the  benefit  of  Ireland,  for  the 
benefit  of  the  United  States,  for  the  benefit  of  England  herself,  it  is 
essential  that  the  Irish  question  be  settled,  and  it  can  only  be  settled 
by  reference  of  it  to  a  fair  plebiscite  of  the  adult  population  of  Ire- 
land. Self-determination  is  what  this  resolution  requests;  that  is 
what  we  are  here  to-day  for,  to  ask  and  urge  you  gentlemen  to  vote 
for  it. 

Hon.  Thomas  B.  Smith,  of  New  York,  handed  in  the  following 
resolutions  for  insertion  in  the  record  : 

Twenty-five  thousand  American  citizens  of  Irish  birth  or  blood,  in  meeting- 
assembled  at  Madison  Square  Garden,  New  York,  on  the  10th  day  of  December, 
1918,  declare: 

That  we  rejoice  with  our  fellow  citizens  at  the  victorious  conclusion  of  the 
war  and  the  triumph  of  the  ideals  for  which  America  entered  the  war. 

That  we  take  justifiable  pride  in  the  record  for  bravery  and  patriotic  fervor 
made  by  the  men  of  the  Irish  race  in  the  Army  and  Navy  and  the  important  part 
they  played  in  the  decisive  battles  for  the  democratic  freedom  of  the  world. 

That  we  applaud  the  determination  of  our  President  to  be  present  at  and  par- 
ticipate in  the  proceedings  of  the  peace  congress,  to  the  end  that  full  effect  be 
given  to  the  principles  enunciated  by  him  in  his  addresses  to  Congress,  his 
State  papers,  and  his  speeches,  which  have  been  accepted  by  the  American  peo- 
ple as  the  true  reason  and  purpose  of  America's  participation  in  the  war. 

That  the  most  important  of  those  principles,  that  of  self-determination  as  to 
the  form  of  Government  by  the  consent  of  the  people  who  are  to  be  governed, 
should  be  applied  to  the  people  of  Ireland,  in  conformity  with  America's  declara- 
tion. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


19 


That  the  Irish  people  are.  by  race,  language,  and  traditions  a  distinct  and 
separate  people,  that  their  country  is  a  nation  with  well-defined  geographical 
boundaries,  that  they  have  exercised  sovereign  rights  for  a  thousand  years  and 
have  been  deprived  of  them  by  force,  that  they  have  never  surrendered  or  com- 
promised those  rights,  that  they  have  not  ceased  to  struggle  morally  and 
physically  to  recover  those  rights:  that  they  are  withheld  from  them  by  force, 
and  that  the  only  rule  which  prevails  in  their  country  to-day  is  the  rule  of  force 
against  the  will  of  the  people. 

That  on  every  battle  field  from  the  earliest  in  the  Revolution  to  the  latest  in 
France,  where  American  ideals  were  fought  for  and  American  institutions  and 
interests  defended,  the  Irish  race  in  America  have  freely  given  their  blood  and 
lives  and  linked  themselves  with  everything  so  essentially  American  that  with 
truth  and  confidence  they  may  now  say  to  their  country  in  this  supreme  hour : 
"  Stand  for  the  people  whose  sons  have  stood  for  you  and  show  grateful  recog- 
nition as  well  as  vindicate  right  and  justice.'' 

Therefore,  we  respectfully  but  earnestly  urge  that  our  President  declare  at 
the  peace  congress  that  the  people  of  Ireland  should,  as  matter  of  right  and  jus- 
tier',  be  governed  only  in  accordance  with  their  consent  and  that  the  will  of  the 
majority,  ascertained  by  a  plebiscite  of  the  adult  population,  be  accepted  as  the 
sovereign  will  of  the  people,  instead  of  the  present  foreign  rule  by  force. 

John  W.  Goff,  Chair  man. 
Alfred  .1.  Talley,  Secretary. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  GEORGE  F.  BARRETT,  JUDGE  OF  THE  CIR- 
CUIT COURT  OF  COOK  COUNTY.  CHICAGO,  ILL. 

Judge  Barrett,  Mr.  Chairman,  there  are  just  a  few  things  I  want 
to  make  some  remarks  about,  having  to  do  with  questions  put  by 
members  of  your  committee  to  other  speakers  who  have  preceded  me. 

I  come  from  a  district  in  Chicago  represented  in  the  House  of 
Representatives  in  Washington  by  the  Hon.  Adolph  J.  Sabath,  one 
of  the  members  of  this  committee.  Across  the  street  from  where  I 
live  begins  the  district  of  Hon.  John  W.  Rainey. 

The  district  of  which  I  am  a  resident  is  peopled  by  practically 
every  nationality  on  the  face  of  the  globe.  We  have  there  in  large 
numbers  the  Poles,  and  almost  entirely  the  Poles  are  Catholic.  We 
have  there  in  large  numbers  the  Bohemians,  and  they  are  largely  Cath- 
olic. We  have  in  large  numbers  the  Germans,  and  they  are  Catholic. 
We  have  the  Irish  there,  religiously  the  same,  and  vet  that  district, 
made  up  in  that  way.  with  possibly  80  per  cent  Catholics,  has  re- 
turned Congressman  Sabath  to  Washington  for  five  or  six  terms.  I 
pay  this  to  you  to  indicate  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  religious 
issue  in  the  matter  in  which  we  are  now  concerned. 

The  Catholics  at  all  times  will  recognize  good  in  a  non-Catholic. 
Time  after  time  I  have  had  occasion  to  appear  on  the  same  platform 
wihh  Congressman  Sabath.  talking  for  the  liberty  of  Poland.  We 
have  appeared  on  the  same  platform  talking  for  the  liberty  of  the 
Czecho-Slav  and  the  Jugo-Slav,  and  all  the  other  Austrian  peoples. 
We  hope,  and  know  now.  that  the  time  is  not  far  off  when  freedom 
will  again  be  given  to  them. 

We  believe,  as  the  President  of  the  United  States  believes,  that 
freedom  for  those  people  is  necessary  for  the  preservation  of  the 
peace  of  the  world.  We  know  that  the  troubles  of  those  foreign 
countries  have  caused  a  great  deal  of  the  friction  and  strife  in 
Europe.  We  know  that  England  herself  has  declared  that  this  war 
was  being  prosecuted  by  herself  and  those  with  whom  she  was  allied 
for  the  purpose  of  removing  from  the  world  those  things  which 


20 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


brought  her  trouble,  due  to  ignorance  concerning  national  existence 
and  rights.  This  country,  w  hen  it  entered  the  war,  declared  that  for 
the  purpose  of  having  a  peace  which  should  be  permanent  and  uni- 
versal it  was  necessary  to  remove  those  causes  which  brought  about 
the  troubles  in  Europe.  If  that  is  true  as  to  Poland  and  Bohemia 
and  those  other  nations — and  we  concede  it  is — by  what  process  of 
reasoning  can  it  be  said  to  be  untrue  as  to  Ireland?  If  it  is  necessary 
to  remove  the  troubles  in  those  other  States  which  have  existed  for 
a  number  of  years,  and  in  some  of  them  for  centuries,  it  certainly,  by 
the  same  Logical  process  of  reasoning-,  must  be  done  as  to  Ireland,  for 
the  cause  is  exactly  the  same. 

We  appear  here  to  suggest  that  not  only  is  it  proper  for  the  Con 
gress  of  the  United  States  to  indicate  its  impressions,  its  desires,  and 
its  judgment  so  far  as  Ireland  is  concerned  but  that  it  is  the  duty 
of  Congress  to  do  so  in  order  that  when  this  Peace  Conference  is 
concluded  and  the  various  things  there  discussed  disposed  of  that 
there  shall  not  be  anything  left  unsettled  which  may  in  10.  -20.  30,  or 
50  years,  or  longer,  again  cause  throuble. 

With  these  tilings  in  mind,  with  the  fact  that  Ireland  has  at  all 
times  done  that  which  every  other  right-thinking  nation  has  done  to 
bring  about  peace,  has  done  the  same  as  this  Nation  has  done  to  bring 
about  peace  in  the  world,  I  say  to  you  gentlemen  on  this  committee 
that  you  will  be  doing  no  less  than  justice  to  the  American  people 
and  to  those  Americans  who  come  of  Irish  forebears  in  recommending 
to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  the  passage  of  this  resolution. 

REMARKS  OF  HON.  JAMES  A.  GALLIVAN,  A  REPRESENTATIVE  IN 
CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  MASSACHUSETTS. 

Mr.  Gallivan.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  you 
have  heard  from  Philadelphia,  Chicago,  and  New  York.  As  a  Rep- 
resentative in  Congress  from  the  city  of  Boston,  whose  citizenship  is 
deeply  interested  in  this  whole  subject,  I  feel  that  it  is  about  time 
that  the  city  of  Boston  should  be  heard  from  on  the  resolution  of 
Congressman  Gallagher. 

There  are  a  few  things  I  would  like  to  remind  this  committee  of, 
as  Members  of  Congress,  which,  perhaps,  for  the  moment  they  have 
forgotten.  First  of  all,  speed  is  necessary  in  connection  with  this 
resolution.  It  asks  President  Wilson  to  do  something  at  an  early 
date.  The  Peace  Conference  is  about  to  get  together.  What  we 
hope  for  is  early  and  favorable  action,  more  favorable  action  than 
was  given  to  a  request  which  was  sent  abroad,  signed  by  168  Members 
of  Congress,  cabled  to  Lloyd-George.  Some  of  you  may  remember 
the  appeal  which  we  made  to  the  distinguished  premier.  We  signed 
that  appeal  as  Members  of  Congress,  with  Mr.  Speaker  Clark  leading 
off.  I  personally  filed  that  cable  to  Lloyd-George,  after  we  entered 
the  war.  asking  that  Ireland  be  given  self-government.  I  do  not 
know  whether  Champ  Clark  ever  heard  from  Lloyd-George  or  not, 
but  I  never  did. 

We  later  had  a  visit  from  the  British  mission,  and  that  mission 
was  entertained  on  the  floor  of  the  House.  It  was  headed  by  Hon. 
Arthur  Balfour.  I  remember  distinctly  that  the  Members  of  the 
House  were  invited  to  shake  hands  with' Mr.  Balfour.  I  declined  to 
do  ^o.  because  I  could  not  forget  something  that  I  had  heard  years 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


21 


ago  from  my  father's  lips  about  some  of  the  Balfour  policies  of  the 
other  days.  I  remember  distinctly  that  a  colleague  in  Congress,  as 
we  stood  within  earshot  of  Mr.  Balfour,  saying  to  me.  "  I  know  what 
is  the  matter  with  you.  It  is  because  he  is  Bloody  Balfour."  I  said, 
"Yes;  I  can  not  forget."  I  reminded  my  colleague  of  the  petition 
which  had  been  sent  to  Lloyd-George.  Then  my  colleague  said, 
**  Let  me  ask  Balfour  about  that/'  He  said  to  Mr.  Balfour.  "  There  is 
Representative  Gallivan,  of  Boston.  He  was  the  author  of  a  resolu- 
tion which  was  sent  by  cable  to  Lloyd-George  a  few  weeks  ago,  signed 
by  168  Congressmen,  asking  for  self-government  for  Ireland  now. 
No  action  has  been  taken  on  it."  And  Mr.  Balfour  replied,  within 
my  hearing.  **  Oh,  I  know  all  about  that  resolution,  and  if  the  gentle- 
man is  the  author  of  that  resolution,  you  can  say  to  him  that  favor- 
able action  is  about  to  be  taken  on  Ireland's  appeal.*' 

That  was  many  months  ago,  Mr.  Chairman,  and  Ireland  still  waits  ! 
England  failed  once  more,  and  now  we  have  it  on  excellent  authority 
that  Ireland  will  not  accept  what  England  called  home  rule,"  but 
will  insist  on  a  form  of  Government  to  be  determined  by  a  plebiscite 
of  her  adult  population. 

What  will  our  own  country  do  to  help  her  \ 

If  the  recent  participation  of  America  in  the  world  war— and  I 
was  one  of  those  in  Congress  who  voted  in  favor  of  our  participa- 
tion— was  really  for  democracy  and  the  rights  of  peoples  to  govern 
themselves,  what  about  Ireland  ?  Xone  too  often  have  we  reminded 
ourselves  of  President  Wilson's  declaration  that  the  great  war  was 
fought  in  behalf  of  the  self-determination  of  nations  and  the  rights 
of  even  the  smallest  among  them  to  freedom  and  their  own  develop- 
ment. Surely,  then,  there  is  no  good  reason  why  the  claims  of  Ire- 
land should  not  be  considered,  at  least  as  much  as  the  claims  of 
Serbia.  Slavonia.  Alsace-Lorraine,  and  the  others. 

Ireland  has  contributed  her  due  proportion  of  fighting  men  to  the 
war.  If  anyone  here  doubts  my  statement,  you  have  but  to  read  with 
a  little  care  the  eloquent  lists  of  the  dead  and  wounded. 

Ireland  has  been  struggling  for  self-government  for  seven  cen- 
turies. Her  people  have  lived  in  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death. 
Every  now  and  then  the  light  -eemed  to  dawn  upon  them,  only  to 
be  soon  extinguished.  In  the  midst  of  the  greatest  havoc  that  has 
ever  wrecked  the  world  their  yearning  was  as  keen  as  ever  it  was 
in  all  the  long  night.  The  dawn  seems  at  last  to  be  coming.  I  hope, 
to  break  upon  a  long  day  of  blessed  prosperity,  and  I  hope  that  a 
year  from  now  the  orator  who  takes  the  place  of  the  lamented  Red- 
mond in  College  Green  may  be  privileged  to  say.  with  Grattan,  as 
he  rose  slowly  in  1782  in  her  House  of  Commons: 

I  am  now  to  address  a  free  people.  Ages  have  passed  away,  and  tins  is  the 
first  moment  in  which  yon  could  he  distinguished  by  that  appellation.  I 
found  Ireland  on  her  knees.  I  watched  over  her  with  that  eternal  solicitude. 
I  have  traced  her  progress  from  injuries  to  arms,  from  arms  to  liherty. 
Ireland  is  now  a  nation.  In  that  character  I  hail  her,  and.  howing  to  her  august 
presence.  I  say,  "  Live  forever." 

Let  no  man  who  loves  liberty  charge  me  with  striking  a  discordant 
note  in  this  appeal.  "So,  sir ;  I  am  striking  no  discordant  note.  The 
world  is  ablaze  with  the  triumph  of  democracy  and  the  struggle  for 
freedom  is  on.  It  will  not  end  until  the  shackles  and  the  manacles 
fall  from  off  every  bondman,  and  until  there  shall  not  be  a  foot  of 


22 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION". 


the  earth,  which  the  Psalmist  calls  God's  footstool,  that  shall  not 
be  made  too  sacred  to  bear  the  I  read  of  a  slave.  America  yearned 
toward  freedom  in  '7.6,  and  Boston  gave  it  to  her  through  the 
evacuation  of  my  city  by  the  troops  of  the  enemy.  Ireland  has  had 
her  national  aspiration,  top,  and  thai  aspiration  is,  under  (rod,  to  be 
realized.  Terrible  is  the  price  that  we  have  paid,  but  whatever  comes, 
whatever  may  befall,  of  one  thing  I  am  firmly  convinced,  that  Amer- 
ica will  never  be  satisfied  until  the  end  for  which  we  are  struggling 
shall  be  attained — the  riddance  of  the  world  of  the  diabolical  phil- 
osophy which  holds  that  man  has  a  right  to  property  in  man;  that 
national  aspiration  is  a  something  not  to  be  realized,  but  to  be  crushed 
out  of  a  people;  and  until  the  principle  which  is  the  very  corner 
stone  of  our  Government  be  recognized,  that  government  depends 
upon  the  consent  of  the  governed. 

Mr.  Chairman,  I  know  you  will  be  glad  to  hear  from  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  clergymen  in  the  city  of  Boston,  and  I  present 
to  you  the  Kev.  Philip  J.  O'Donnell,  of  my  city. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV.  PHILIP  J.  O'DONNELL,  OF  BOSTON,  MASS. 

Kev.  Father  O'Donnell.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the 
committee,  there  was  recently  a  mass  meeting  of  18.000  American 
citizens  assembled  in  Boston  made  up  of  all  denominations  and  of 
all  classes  and  nv.es,  there  being  present  representatives  of  the 
Polish,  the  Jewish,  and  the  Slavonic  races  as  well  as  the  Irish.  Some 
descendants  of  the  old  Puritans  as  well,  who  still  love  liberty  now 
as  always,  joined  with  us.  and  they  asked  that  I  represent  them  be- 
fore your  committee  and  ask  of  you  that  which  the  President  has 
promised  to  all  Nations,  great  and  small,  self-determination  for 
Ireland. 

There  is  hardly  any  need  of  my  going  over  the  historic  conditions 
in  Ireland,  because  you  have  already  received  that  information  from 
ether  speakers.  But  there  are  some  things  that,  in  the  course  of 
events,  I  should  say. 

Our  ancestors  fought  here.  I  am  American  born,  born  within  the 
shadow  of  Bunker  Hill,  and  my  people  have  been  here  for  more  than 
one  generation,  and  I  speak,  therefore,  as  an  American  of  Irish  de- 
scent, and  as  proud  of  both  as  I  am  of  my  religious  convictions.  As 
such  I  come  to  ask  that  through  this  self-determination,  the  wrongs 
of  the  (  enturies  may  be  cared  for  and  prevented  in  the  future. 

Not  only  was  Ireland  a  nation  before  Christ  was  born,  not  only 
has  it  stood  a  nation  for  12  centuries  and  during  these  latter  cen- 
turies has  been  still  a  nation — but  a  nation  subject  to  a  foreign  body 
that  has  been  refused  its  rights. 

My  dear  old  grandmother  was  a  Presbyterian,  born  in  the  north  of 
Ireland,  and  she  could  neither  read  nor  write  because  it  was  a  crime 
to  receive  an  education  in  Ireland.  There  was  a  price  on  the  heads 
of  schoolmasters,  as  well  as  on  the  heads  of  priests.  And  I  will  say 
here,  with  great  gratitude  to  the  Presbyterians  of  the  north  of  Ire- 
land in  those  days  when  the  priest  was  hunted  as  the  wolf,  he  went, 
oftentimes,  into  the  homes  of  Presbyterians  and  there  received  that 
hospitality  which  has  made  the  Irish  famous. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


23 


The  trend  of  the  times  has  compelled  England  to  do  something. 
But  why  should  Ireland  be  obliged  to  accept  anything  from  a  for- 
eign nation?  Why  should  Ireland  not  be  able  to  take  care  of  her- 
self ?  I  believe  she  is  able  and  ready.  That  is  why  I  appeal  to  you. 
They  have  the  brain  and  the  brawn:  they  have  the  purity  of  their 
women  and  the  splendid  ability  of  their  men,  and  they  have  every 
national  characteristic.  They  have  a  nation  now  over  there.  Being 
Irish,  I  have  been  fighting  for  her  freedom  all  my  life,  and  I  have 
always  felt  it  was  the  duty  of  every  Irishman  of  American  nativity 
to  work  for  the  interests  of  the  cradle  land  of  the  race,  and  work 
all  the  time  for  her. 

We  have  already,  by  the  wonderful  victories  procured  mostly  by 
our  armies,  pledged  ourselves  in  the  words  of  the  President,  as  a 
nation,  through  him,  to  give  to  every  other  nation  the  rights  we 
have,  the  right  to  live  in  happiness  with  each  other  and  be  equal  be- 
fore the  law,  and  the  right  to  make  the  laws.  In  the  beginning  of 
this  country  of  ours  they  would  not  stand  being  dominated  by  people 
of  a  foreign  power,  because  England  was  foreign  to  this  country,  and 
was  trying  to  enslave  this  country. 

Our  people  rose  up  in  arms  for  liberty  and  freedom.  The  time  for 
armies  is  rapidly  going  by  because  we  are  all  desirous  of  having  peace 
among  all  nations.  And  our  people  demand  that  might  shall  be  no 
longer  right  in  any  nation.  We  ask  that  for  Ireland,  one  of  the  oldest 
nations  of  Europe ;  we  demand  that  by  the  right  of  all  Irish  in  Amer- 
ica who  have  been  for  America  from  the  day  they  first  landed  here, 
with  their  money,  talents,  their  ability,  so  many  of  them  signers  of 
the  Declaration  of  Independence,  so  many  of  them  working  in  the 
ranks.  When  the  Revolutionary  Army  was  at  Valley  Forge,  in  pov- 
erty, it  was  the  Irish  in  Philadelphia  who  gave  the  money  to  take 
care  of  that  Army.  The  best  blood  of  Irishmen  has  been  given  to 
the  cause  of  liberty  and  freedom  in  America  and  there  is  hardly  a 
family  to-day  of  any  prominence  in  the  United  States  that  can  not 
trace  Irish  blood  back  somewhere  in  its  history. 

I  have  lived  61  years  in  the  city  of  Boston.  Congressman  Gallivan 
says  it  is  the  greatest  Irish  city  in  the  world.  I  believe  it  is.  And 
at  the  same  time  I  believe,  before  God,  there  is  no  city  in  all  the  world 
that  is  more  democratic,  and  no  city  in  America  which  is  more  thor- 
oughly American. 

So  I  come  representing  the  cardinal  archbishop  of  Boston,  the 
bishop  of  Boston,  and  700  priests.  I  come  representing  1,000,000 
Roman  Catholics  of  every  nationality. 

I  have  a  petition  addressed  to  the  President,  signed  by  the  cardinal 
archbishop,  the  bishop,  and  priests  of  Boston,  signed  Iby  the  people 
of  all  nationalities  asking  for  the  one  thing  that  brings  us  here  to-day 
from  Calfornia  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  from  Canada  down  to 
Florida  and  the  Mexican  border. 

We  come  to  ask  justice,  and  this  war  was  fought  for  justice  and 
right,  and  we  ask  that  you,  our  Representatives,  will  remember  that 
20,000,000  and  more  of  Irishmen  and  their  descendants  ask  of  you 
for  that  dear  little  old  island  so  fondly  loved  by  its  children  all  over 
the  world,  in  the  name  of  the  exiles  who  died  here  on  our  shores,  in 
the  name  of  the  soldiers  who  have  fought  and  died  on  fields  of  battle, 


24 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


in  the  name  of  sailors  who  have  raised  the  Stars  and  Stripes  so  high, 
and  in  the  name  of  God,  that  yon  give  to  Ireland  self-determination. 

As  Cardinal  G'Connell  said  in  his  great  speech  at  Madison  Square 
Garden  Tuesday  night:  "  Ireland  lias  fought  for  more  than  seven  cen- 
turies for  the  right  of  the  governed  to  be  ruled  only  with  their  own 
consent."  That  is  the  principle  which  ultimately  won  America's  free- 
dom; and  it  is  because  America  understands  that  principle  that  Ire- 
land to-day  relies  upon  America  to  echo  it  throughout  the  world  for 
Ireland's  liberty. 

Ireland  must  be  allowed  to  tell  the  world  freely  what  she  wants, 
how  she  wishes  to  be  governed. 

Ireland,  among  the  small  nations,  is  the  longest  sufferer.  If  the 
principle  of  right  and  justice  for  all  is  not  applied  in  her  case,  there 
will  be  no  complete  justice,  and  the  war.  not  bringing  justice,  will  not 
bring  peace. 

Who  was  it  but  our  own  President  Wilson  who,  by  the  enunciation 
of  the  great  principles  of  justice,  united  the  peoples  of  the  whole 
world  ? 

America  has  fought,  in  this  war  not  for  selfish  aims.  She  has  given 
hei-  best  blood,  her  hardest  toil  and  her  enormous  wealth,  and  in 
return  gels  not  one  foot  of  soil,  not  a  single  material  gain.  She  has 
the  right  to  demand  that  for  which  alone  she  has  made  such  tre- 
mendous sacrifices — justice  to  all. 

[Telogram  to  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs.] 

San  Francisco,  Cal.,  December  13,  1918. 
The  following  resolution  \\;is  adopted  at  ;i  regular  meeting  of  the  Inter- 
national   Brotherhood  of  Boilermakers,  Iron-Ship  Builders  and  Helpers  of 
America,  Lodge  No.  6,  Sun  Francisco: 

Whereas  one  of  the  purposes  of  the  Fnited  States  entering  war  was  for  the 

freedom  of  small  nations,  and, 
Whereas  Ireland,  one  of  the  oldest  of  the  small  nations,  has  for  seven  centuries 

suffered  from  the  domination  of  a  foreign  power  against  its  will,  and 
Whereas  the  success  of  all  American  wars  has  been  largely  due  to  citizens  of 

Irish  origin  and  extraction,  and. 
Whereas,  there  is  now  pending  before  Congress  a  resolution  demanding  that  the 

forthcoming  Peace  Conference  apply  self  determination  to  Ireland  as  well  as 

to  Belgium.  Poland.  Serbia,  and  the  other  small  nations,  therefore,  he  it 

Resolved,  That  we,  the  officers  and  members  of  the  International  Brother- 
hood of  Boilermakers,  Iron-Ship  Builders  and  Helpers  of  America  of  Local 
No.  i>.  in  regular  meeting  assembled  recognize  the  claims  of  Ireland  as  just,  and 
demand  that  favorable  action  be  taken  upon  this  resolution  and  that  this  resolu- 
tion be  telegraphed  to  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Relations, 
House  of  Representatives. 

International  Brotherhood  of  Boilermakers, 

Iron-Shtp  Btjtlders  and  Helpers  or  America,  Local  No.  G, 
The  Anglo  Builti/img,  Sixteenth  and  Mission  streets.  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Mr.  McLaughlin.  Mr.  Chairman,  all  of  the  previous  speakers 
have  been  of  one  faith.  I  would  now  like  to  call  on  Mr.  James 
Thompson,  of  Kentucky,  who  is  not  of  the  same  faith. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  JAMES  THOMPSON,  OF  LOUISVILLE,  KY. 

Mr.  Thompson.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  am  not  a  speaker  and  I  will  only 
say  a  word.  I  come  from  Kentucky,  which,  I  believe,  was  discovered 
by  an  Irishman,  and  a  large  part  of  our  population  is  Irish,  and  they 
all  have  a  very  great  interest  in  this  subject. 


THE  IBISH  QUESTION. 


25 


I  only  want  to  indorse  what  Judge- Scanlan  and  others  have  so  very 
well  said.  We  all  are  very  much  interested  in  this  subject,  and  we 
hope  you  will  consider  the  resolution  favorably  and  report  it  to  the 
House  of  Representatives. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JAMES  A.  HAMILL,  A  REPRESENTATIVE  IN 
CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  NEW  JERSEY. 

Mr.  Hamill.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
shall  express  but  a  thought  or  two  which  I  think  may  be  helpful  to 
the  committee,  and  then  conclude. 

This  is  an  old  question,  and  until  the  present  war,  a  cause  well- 
nigh  hopeless.  But  the  purposes  avowed  by  the  United  States  in 
declaring  war,  and  the  lending  of  billions  of  bullion,  and  millions 
of  men  to  its  support  give  us  hope  that  the  cause  will  be  triumphant. 

We,  according  to  the  words  of  the  President,  availed  ourselves  of 
the  glorious  privilege  of  spending  our  blood  and  our  treasure  in 
behalf  of  the  principles  that  gave  us  birth.  We  went  to  war  to  make 
the  world  safe  for  democracy.  We  saw  languishing  under  the  heel 
of  an  oppressor  beautiful  Belgium.  We  looked  to  the  east  and  we 
saw  a  condition  even  still  more  hopeless.  We  saw  the  Poles,  the 
Croats,  the  Serbians,  and  the  other  small  nations  languishing  under 
the  despotism  of  the  central  empires  and  we  declared  that  not  only 
would  they  be  emancipated  from  the  shackles  which  bound  them  to 
the  central  empires,  but  that  the  entire  world  would  be  made  safe 
for  democracy.  What  did  we  mean  by  that?  That  meant  that  na- 
tions, instead  of  being  subdivided  on  historical  lines,  would  be  sub- 
divided on  ethnological  lines.  That  is  to  say,  just  like  every  family 
should  be  permitted  to  divide  according  to  the  trend  of  its  genius, 
and  that  because  some  centuries  ago  one  nation  held  another  in 
servitude  that  would  be  no  reason  why  that  situation  should  be  con- 
tinued. 

The  Celt  is  absolutely  distinct  and  different  from  the  Saxon  and 
for  700  years  the  people  of  Ireland  have  made  a  protest  against  being 
held  in  bondage.  The  protest  has  been  made  in  the  face  of  the  world 
and  has  oftentimes  gone  unheeded.  But  now,  according  to  our 
avowed  purposes  it  will,  we  hope  and  confidently  believe,  be  heeded. 

Let  us  get  out  of  the  realm  of  passionate  elocution  and  get  down  to 
calm  facts.  Why  have  not  the  people  of  Ireland  more  right  than  any 
other  single  race  to  ask  the  Congress  of  this  country  to  declare  in 
favor  of  their  freedom?  There  is  attributed  to  Mr.  Josephus 
Daniels,  our  splendid  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  that  40  per  cent  of  our 
Navy  were  men  of  Irish  blood,  and  that  one-third  of  our  Army  were 
men  of  Irish  blood. 

Now,  if  other  nations  who  are  not  so  extensively  represented  in  the 
citizenship  of  our  country  by  their  descendants  have  a  right  to  de- 
mand freedom,  so  much  the  stronger  reason  for  the  right  of  the 
Irish  people  to  demand  emancipation. 

Let  me  conclude  by  saying  this,  that  we  have  made  a  glowing  state- 
ment, which,  if  carried  into  practice,  will  ring  down  the  centuries — 
to  make  the  world  safe  for  democracy.  Now,  if  we  are  not  a  race  of 
mere  spread-eagle  proclaimers,  if  we  are  genuine  and  not  fraudulent, 
if  we  are  real  and  not  sham,  if  we  are  practical  and  not  fanciful,  then 
we  will  have  the  courage  to  reduce  this  glowing  profession  to  a  con- 


26 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Crete  and  specific  instance,  and  yon,  Mr.  Chairman  and  members  of 
this  committee,  will  report  this  resolution,  and  yon  and  I,  and  all  our 
colleagues  in  both  Houses  will  pass  it  without  delay. 
(Thereupon  a  recess  was  taken  until  8  o'clock  p.  m.) 

EVENING  SESSION. 

The  committee  assembled,  pursuant  to  the  taking  of  recess.  ;u  8 
o'clock  p.  m. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  THOMAS  P.  FAY,  OF  LONG  BRANCH,  N.  J. 

Mi-.  Fay.  Ireland  appears  at  the  bar  of  justice  in  the  court  of  the 
world,  at  a  peace  conference  that  is  to  be  held  in  France,  and  asks  for 
justice,  and  she  calls  the  nation  that  rules  her  to  the  bar  to  answer 
that  call.  They  are  to  decide  in  that  court  whether  her  wrongs  shall 
be  redressed  and  her  rights  shall  be  respected. 

She  pleads  for  the  end  of  coercion ;  she  pleads  for  the  right  of  self- 
determination;  and,  greatest  of  all,  she  pleads  for  the  right  of  liberty. 
She  pleads  with  the  same  force  and  the  same  tone  that  that  great 
American.  Patrick  Henry,  pleaded  the  cause  of  American  liberty. 
"  Is  life  so  sweet,"  he  said,  "  as  to  be  purchased  at  the  price  of  chains 
and  slavery?    If  such  be,  then 'give  me  liberty  or  give  me  death.'' 

The  Irish  people  have  been  longer  in  bondage  than  any  other  peo- 
ple on  the  face  of  the  earth.  They  are  prisoners  now ;  they  are  occu- 
pying the  jails  of  their  oppressors.  The  prisoners  of  all  lands  are 
being  released,  but  the  patriots  of  Ireland  are  now  in  loathsome 
foreign  jails  simply  because  they  are  Irish  patriots. 

Everyone  cried  out  against  the  massacre  of  the  Armenians:  every- 
body sympathizes  with  the  Jews  for  the  pogroms  that  have  gone  on: 
everyone  feels  sorry  for  the  Poles.  But  why  do  the  Americans  re- 
main quiet  when  the  worst  injustice  of  all  has  been  meted  out  for 
centuries  to  the  Irish  nation? 

We  could  not  get  any  stronger  language  in  favor  of  the  rights  of 
that  nation  than  that  which  has  been  uttered  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States.  He  has  pleaded  the  cause  of  small  nations  in  no  un- 
certain words. 

Could  anything  be  more  clear  than  the  attitude  of  the  Amer- 
ican Government  when  it  was  called  upon  to  settle  the  affairs 
of  the  world?  The  President  of  the  United  States  was  allowed  to 
be  the  spokesman  for  the  world.  He  was  the  spokesman  for  the 
allies  and  he  laid  down  the  principles  upon  which  they  would  meet 
and  settle  this  greatest  of  world's  wars.  And  none  is  better  able 
to  determine  its  interpretation  as  they  sit  around  the  peace  table 
in  France,  and  none  is  committed  more  to  it  than  the  Members  of 
the  Houses  of  Congress  who  stand  behind  these  principles  enun- 
ciated by  the  President  of  the  United  States. 

They  are  what  our  country  is  committed  to:  they  are  what  you 
are  committed  to  as  Members  of  Congress ;  they  are  what  the  Ameri- 
can people  are  committed  to.  They  are  committed  to  justice  to  all 
nations,  great  and  small;  they  are  committed  to  the  rights  of 
humanity  and  to  the  rights  of  the  people. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


27 


I  will  quote  the  language  of  the  President  to  Congress  on  the  *2d  of 
April,  1917,  when  this  country  was  committed  to  enter  this  great  war. 
In  closing,  he  said  : 

But  the  right  is  more  precious  than  peace,  and  we  shall  fight  for  the  things 
which  we  have  always  carried  nearest  our  hearts — for  democracy,  for  the  right 
of  those  who  submit  to  authority  to  have  a  voice  in  their  own  governments, 
for  the  rights  and  liberties  of  small  nations,  for  a  universal  dominion  of  right 
by  such  a  concert  of  free  peoples  as  shall  bring  peace  and  safety  to  all  nations 
and  make  the  world  itself  at  last  free. 

Is  there  a  man  in  Congress  who  is  not  committed  to  that,  when 
immediately  after  that  address  you  passed  the  act  declaring  war? 
You  remember  you  laid  down  the  principle  upon  which  we  entered 
it;  that  it  is  the  right  of  small  nations  and  the  right  of  free  peoples 
to  govern  themselves.  Every  American  is  committed  to  it,  and  he 
can  not  get  away  from  it  and  still  be  an  honorable  and  true  and 
straightforward  American,  who  wants  to  follow  and  live  up  to  the 
institutions  and  principles  which  have  been  established  here,  and 
which  we  all  love  so  well. 

The  world  is  turning  its  solicitous  eyes  upon  us.  France,  Italy, 
Serbia,  and  Poland  are  all  turning  their  eyes  toward  us  to  find  out 
whether  we  are  honest  in  the  declarations  which  we  have  made. 

But,  gentlemen,  until  justice  is  done  for  Irish  cause,  the  men  of 
Australia  and  Canada  and  America,  who  have  made  the  greatest 
sacrifice  of  the  centuries,  will  never  let  the  world  rest  in  peace  until 
their  dear  cause  is  heard  at  the  proper  tribunal  and  settled  honestly 
and  right. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Mr.  Chairman,  the  committee  this  afternoon  ar- 
ranged a  program,  and  the  organizations  represented  here  are  very 
anxious  that  the  speakers  shall  limit  themselves  to  the  subject  matter 
of  the  resolution  before  the  committee,  and  that  no  speaker  shall  be 
allowed  more  than  the  time  allotted  to  him. 

The  next  speaker  is  Mr.  Charles  J.  Dolan,  of  Missouri. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  CHARLES  J.  DOLAN,  OF  ST.  LOUIS,  MO. 

Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  the  question  was 
asked  this  morning  by  the  chairman  as  to  when  the  common  law  was 
introduced  in  Ireland,  and  that  has  suggested  to  me  that  it  would 
clarify  matters  if  I  were  to  recall  the  principal  facts  upon  which  the 
present  relations  between  England  and  Ireland  are  based. 

I  have  had  exceptional  opportunities  for  studying  this  question 
during  two  years  when  I  represented  an  Irish  constituency  in  the 
British  Parliament. 

Ireland  was  a  nation  with  her  recorded  history  for  at  least  a 
thousand  years  before  the  English  invasion.  She  was  converted  to 
Christianity  150  years  before  Saint  Augustine  arrived  on  his  mission 
to  convert  the  English.  During  the  sixth  and  seventh  centuries  Ireland 
was  the  headquarters  of  missionary  effort  in  Europe  and  was  the 
center  of  learning.  Her  schools  were  crowded  with  students  from 
every  European  country,  and  so  many  were  there  attending  the  great 
school  of  Armagh  that  one  street  in  that  town  is  still  known  as  Saxon 
Street. 


BOSTON  COLLEGE  LIBRARY 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS. 


28 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


When  the  great  religious  Council  of  Constance  was  in  session 
[reland  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  five  ancient  sovereign  nations 
o!"  the  world. 

In  ll72  the  English  came.  Holding  al  first  only  a  very  small  part  of 
the  eastern  coast,  they  gradually  extended  their  conquest  during  the 
succeeding  500  years,  in  spite  of  the  persistent  opposition,  until  by 
the  end  of  Elizabeth's  reign  the  conquest  of  Ireland  was  apparently 
(  omplete.  In  the  next  reign,  that  of  James  the  First,  took  place  the 
plantation  of  Ulster  with  English  and  Scotch  settlers.  The  Ulster 
question  date-  from  this  time.  A  little  later,  in  1641,  the  native 
[rish  rose  in  rebellion,  and  for  eight  years,  during  which  time  it  was 
governed  by  a  confederation  of  Irish  and  Anglo-Irish  chieftains, 
Ireland  was  lost  to  the  English  crown.  In  1649  Ireland  was  recon- 
quered by  Cromwell,  and  so  thoroughly  was  the  work  accomplished 
that  "  the  curse  of  Cromwell "  is  the  bitterest  malediction  on  the  lips 
of  an  Irish  peasant.  It  was  at  this  time  that  the  population  of 
Ireland  fell  to  800,000  persons,  as  ment  ioned  by  Judge  Scanlau  this 
morning.  The  next  event  of  importance  was  the  winning  of  a  free 
Irish  Parliament  in  178:2  by  the  Protestant  leader  Henry  Grattan 
and  liis  Volunteers.  Sixteen  years  afterwards  English  intrigue 
brought  about  the  Rebellion  of  1798.  This  was  participated  in  by 
the  Presbyterians  of  Ulster  under  the  leadership  of  Wolfe  Tone  and 
Henry  Joy  McCracken  and  by  the  Catholics  of  the  southeast  led  by 
Bagenal  Harvey,  a  Protestant  landlord  of  County  Wexford.  This 
rebellion,  like  all  preceding  ones,  was  extinguished  in  the  blood  of 
countless  thousands  of  Irishmen. 

The  next  notable  event  was  the  infamous  union  of  the  Parliaments 
of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  in  1800.  The  situation  at  this  time  may 
be  best  understood  by  reference  to  some  comparative  statistics.  In  the 
year  of  the  union  the  population  of  Great  Britain  was  ten  and  one-half 
million,  and  the  population  of  Ireland  was  five  and  one-half  million. 
Both  countries  possessed  a  national  debt.  Ireland's  national  debt  was 
£28,000.000  while  England's  was  £4:>0,000,000.  In  18  years  England 
increased  Irish  taxation  nearly  twice  and  a  half  what  it  had  been  in  the 
year  of  the  union,  but  increased  her  own  taxation  by  only  one-quarter. 
By  1914  the  taxation  in  England  had  been  decreased  3  shillings  per 
head  compared  with  the  taxation  in  1819.  while  the  taxation  in 
Ireland  had  been  increased  29  shillings  per  head.  That  is.  Great 
Britain  had  received  roundly  a  5  per  cent  relief  in  taxation  while 
Ireland  had  been  burdened  -200  per  cent. 

Two  years  after  the  union  occurred  the  heroic  and  ill-fated  rebel- 
lion led  by  Robert  Emmet,  and  after  this  effort  Ireland  turned  for  a 
time  to  constitutional  methods  under  the  leadership  of  Daniel  O'Con- 
nell.  and  demanded  repeal  of  the  Act  of  Union,  a  demand  ,which  was 
fundamentally  different  from  the  demand  of  home  rule,  inasmuch 
as  the  former  seeks  to  restore  an  independent  Parliament,  while  the 
latter  seeks  delegated  authority  from  the  English  Parliament.  Con- 
stitutional methods  proved  as  futile  as  armed  rebellion,  and  the 
Irish  Nationalists  again  had  recourse  to  armed  rebellion,  again  under 
the  Leadership  of  a  Protestant  landlord.  Smith  O'Brien.  This  revolt 
was  soon  quelled,  and  was  followed  19  years  later  by  the  Fenian 
uprising,  after  the  temporary  failure  of  which  the  majority  of  the 
Irish  people  turned  once  again  to  constitutional  methods  under  the 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


29 


leadership,  first  of  Butt,  then  of  ParneJl,  and  finally  of  the  late  John 
E.  Bedmond.  Once  again  faith  in  constitutional  methods  was  shat- 
tered and  the  result  was  the  rebellion  of  1916. 

The  Irish  nation  has  never  voluntarily  submitted  to  English 
rule  at  any  period  of  its  history.  There  has  never  been  a  moment 
since  the  fateful  year  of  1172,  when,  if  the  British  armed  forces  had 
been  withdrawn,  Ireland  would  not  have  established  an  independent 
native  government.  It  is  the  boast  of  Irish  patriots  that  at  least 
once  in  every  generation  Irish  blood  has  been  shed  in  attempting 
to  end  the  English  usurpation.  At  this  moment  Ireland  is  held  in 
subjection  by  a  British  army  of  250,000  men,  and  British  and  Irish 
jails  hold  more  than  500  leaders  of  the  Irish  people,  whose  sole 
offense  is  that  they  have  organized  to  win  the  freedom  of  their 
country. 

The  Irish  nation  has  never  surrendered  its  sovereignty.  Although 
the  majority  would  have  accepted  a  measure  of  home  rule  at  any 
time  during  the  40  years  preceding  1916,  it  must  be  understood  that 
they  regarded  home  rule  as  merely  an  experiment  in  government, 
and  that  they  expected  that  if  the  experiment  should  have  proved 
successful  Great  Britain  would  have  completed  the  reform  and  done 
full  justice  by  restoring  Ireland's  national  independence. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Mr.  Chairman,  the  next  speaker  will  be  Mrs.  Adelia 
Christie,  of  Ohio. 

STATEMENT  OF  MRS.  ADELIA  CHRISTIE,  OF  CLEVELAND,  OHIO. 

Mrs.  Christie.  Mr.  Chairman,  representing  the  United  Irish  So- 
cieties of  northern  Ohio,  I  beg  leave  to  add  my  voice  and  the  voices 
of  those  whom  I  have  the  honor  to  represent  to  the  pleas  that  have 
been  made  here  for  justice  to  Ireland. 

We  believe  at  this  time  that  the  passage  of  this  resolution,  intro- 
duced by  Mr.  Gallagher  through  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
would  strengthen  the  United  States  Peace  Commission  in  any  de- 
mands, or  in  a  demand  which  we  hope  they  will  make  for  Ireland  at 
the  coming  peace  conference. 

We  ask,  Mr.  Chairman,  only  for  a  free  Ireland.  We  ask  that,  in 
conjunction  with  all  the  other  small  nations,  Ireland  may  be  allowed 
to  work  out  her  own  development,  to  look  after  her  own  interests, 
and  to  be  governed  and  directed  by  a  government  of  her  own  people. 
To  this  end,  Mr.  Chairman,  we  ask  this  honorable  body  to  report 
favorably  on  this  resolution  and  thereby  gain  for  themselves  the 
right  to  be  enrolled  with  the  galaxy  of  great  men  who  believe  in  right 
and  justice  and  in  the  enunciated  principles  for  which  this  great 
American  Eepublic  entered  and  terminated  successfully  the  present 
war. 

Mr.  Gorman.  The  next  speaker  wTill  be  Mr.  Clancy,  of  Minnesota. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  J.  M.  CLANCY,  OF  ST.  PAUL,  MINN. 

Mr.  Clancy.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
am  here  representing  the  St.  Paul  Trades  and  Labor  Assembly,  a 
federation  with  over  105  affiliated  organizations  and  a  membership 
of  some  17,000. 


30 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Some  two  weeks  ago  at  a  special  meeting,  which  they  called  for 
thai  purpose,  they  took  up  the  question  of  self-determination  for  Ire- 
land and  the  vote  in  favor  of  it  was  unanimous.  They  were  told 
that  the  matter  would  possibly  come  before  Congress.  They  won- 
dered why  any  nation  that  had  loved  peace  and  loved  liberty  like  the 
American  people  would  have  to  have  a  delegation  appear  before  them 
to  ask  them  to  try  to  get  that  same  liberty  and  justice  for  another 
nat  ion. 

When  I  was  coming  over  from  St.  Paul  the  mayor  of  our  city,  Mr. 
Lawrence  G.  Hodgson,  gave  me  a  letter  addressed  to  me,  and  that 
letter  reads  as  follows : 

December  10.  1918. 

Mr.  J.  M.  Clancy, 

Commissioner  of  Parks,  Play0round8,  and  Public  Buildings, 

St.  Paul,  Minn. 

My  Deab  Commissioner  :  I  understand  that  you  are  going  to  Washington  and 
that  you  niny  have  an  opportunity  to  present  to  some  official  body  the  sentiments 
of  our  people  relative  to  the  recognition  in  the  peace  conference  of  the  principle 
of  self-determination  for  Ireland. 

We  had  a  very  large  and  enthusiastic  meeting  of  representative  citizens  a 
few  days  ago,  in  which  this  question  was  discussed  very  earnestly,  and  in 
a  very  remarkable  spirit  of  patriotism,  entirely  free  from  bitterness  and 
political  bias. 

The  sentiment  of  that  meeting  was  not  the  sentiment  of  any  opposition  to 
England,  but  a  sentiment  that  the  principle  of  democracy  and  self-government 
as  vindicated  in  the  war  should  be  extended  without  discrimination  to  all 
peoples  of  the  world  in  order  that  the  readjustments  of  civilization  should  be 
Without  exception  based  upon  the  ideal  that  all  social  governmental  processes 
should  be  the  free  expression  of  the  people. 

It  would  seem  to  be  wholly  illogical  to  apply  the  principle  of  self-determina- 
tion only  in  part.  The  processes  of  democracy  must  include  all  peoples  or 
they  will  in  a  vital  sense  exclude  all  peoples. 

It  was  the  earnest  sentiment  of  our  meeting  that  if  a  way  could  be  found 
to  take  care  of  the  Irish  question  along  the  lines  of  self-determination  that 
there  would  be  a  much  greater  cohesion  of  national  sentiment  in  America  in 
favor  of  the  program  made  up  at  the  peace  table. 

If  you  find  opportunity  to  present  this  view  as  the  expression  of  a  large 
number  of  St.  Paul  citizens,  I  will  greatly  appreciate  it. 
Respectfully  yours, 

L.  G.  Hodgson, 

Mayor. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  STEPHEN  J.  McDONOUGH,  OF  BALTIMORE,  MD. 

Mr.  McDoxough.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee, 
I  come  from  the  city  of  Baltimore,  which,  as  you  know,  has  a  large 
population  of  people  of  Irish  blood  and  extraction.  I  live  in  the 
congressional  district  of  Congressman  Linthicum.  who  is  a  member 
of  your  committee  and  who  will  inform  you  that  he  has  been  elected 
four  consecutive  terms  by  the  vote  of  the  Irish  people  in  his  district. 
I  just  mention  that  to  you  to  demonstrate  that  a  man's  nationality 
er  creed  is  never  taken  into  consideration  by  those  of  Irish  birth: 
that,  first  of  all.  they  want  fitness,  and  nationality  and  creed  are 
secondary  considerations. 

I  had  the  honor  of  representing  that  district  in  the  Legislature  of 
Maryland  for  three  terms,  and  during  the  Avar  session  of  the  legis- 
lature I  introduced  a  resolution  identical  with  the  Gallagher  resolu- 
tion, which  is  before  you.  and  I  am  happy  to  say  that  that  resolu- 
tion passed  both  the  house  and  the  senate  of  the  Maryland  Legisla- 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


31 


ture  without  a  dissenting  vote,  showing  you  gentlemen  the  sentiment 
of  Maryland  in  behalf  of  self-determination  for  Ireland. 

We  are  to  have  a  meeting  at  the  Auditorium  Theater  next  Sunday 
night,  and  I  am  confident  that  there  will  be  the  largest  outpouring  of 
our  citizens  that  has  ever  taken  place  in  the  city  of  Baltimore  in 
behalf  of  self-determination  for  Ireland. 

I  trust  you  gentlemen  of  this  committee  will  take  into  consideration 
what  the"  Irish  Parliament  did  many  years  ago  when  our  country 
was  fighting  for  its  independence.  The  Irish  Parliament  was  in 
hearty  accord  with  the  Americans  and  did  everything  in  their  power 
to  assist  the  Americans. 

Nearly  50  per  cent  of  the  Revolutionary  Army  was  Irish,  and  in 
all  our  wars  from  that  day  to  the  present  time  no  one  can  say  that 
the  Irish  have  not  done  their  full  duty. 

So  I  sincerely  hope  and  believe  you  will  take  the  action  our  Presi- 
dent has  outlined  in  his  pronouncement  that  no  people  shall  be 
forced  to  live  under  a  sovereignty  which  they  do  not  wish  to  live 
under :  that  you  will  take  that  seriously  and  that  self-determination 
will  be  accomplished  for  Ireland  as  it  has  been  for  the  Poles,  and 
the  Czecho-Slavs.  and  the  Jugo-Slavs,  and  all  the  other  oppressed 
peoples,  with  which  we  are  in  hearty  accord. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Our  next  speaker,  Mr.  Chairman,  will  be  Father 
Howard,  of  Oswego.  X.  Y. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV.  TIMOTHY  HOWARD,  OF  OSWEGO,  N.  Y. 

Eev.  Father  Howard.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  com- 
mittee, I  simply  want  to  emphasize  my  feelings  in  appreciation  of 
the  fact  that  you  gentlemen,  who  are  in  a  position  to  report  this 
resolution  out  of  committee,  will  do  so  from  the  point  of  view  that 
as  Americans  you  are  called  upon  to  exercise  toward  Ireland  the 
same  sentiments  that  were  exercised  toward  us  in  the  dark  days  of 
our  sufferings,  when  we  were  fighting  for  independence. 

A  few  months  ago  Gen.  Pershing  crossed  the  seas  as  the  com- 
mander in  chief  of  an  army,  an  army  that  went  over  there  to  do  its 
best  in  order  that  the  people  of  the  world  might  be  free  and  enjoy 
the  liberty  that  this  country  guarantees  to  its  citizens.  In  doing  so 
he  went  to  the  tomb  of  Lafayette  and  placed  thereon  a  wreath  and 
said,  "  Lafayette,  we  have  come  to  pay  the  debt  we  owe  to  you  and  the 
French,  from  which  you  sprung  across  the  seas  a  hundred  years  ago 
to  help  us  in  our  trying  difficulties." 

I  assure  you,  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  if  you  take  into  con- 
sideration the  feelings  of  the  Irish  and  the  Irish  Americans  in  this 
country,  if  you  report  this  bill,  as  we  earnestly  pray  you  to  do,  so 
that  it  will  come  on  the  floor  of  the  House  for  a  vote,  that  not  a 
hundred  years  will  pass  before  the  gratitude  of  the  Irish  in  Ireland 
and  their  descendants  in  America  shall  be  laid  at  your  feet,  grati- 
tude that  shall  have  its  origin  in  the  hearts  of  the  Irish  people  for 
the  freedom  that  shall  be  theirs  for  all  the  generations  to  come. 

The  Chairman.  I  would  like  some  of  the  speakers  to  address 
themselves  to  the  question  of  the  propriety  of  the  Congress  passing  a 
resolution  requesting  our  commissioners  to  the  peace  conference  to 
urge  the  dismemberment  of  a  nation  with  which  we  were  associated 
in  the  war.    We  are  all  in  sympathy  with  the  spirit  of  the  resolu- 


32 


THE   IRISH  QUESTION. 


tion;  we  believe  the  Irish  to  be  a  great  people  and  feel  that  they 
should  have  the  right  of  self  determination.  I  believe  such  is  the 
sentiment  of  the  people  of  this  country.  The  serious  question  is  the 
propriety  of  this  resolution  in  circumstances  in  which  our  Govern- 
ment is  confronted.  I  have  had  a  request  for  hearings  in  opposition 
to  it.  and  T  would  like  somebody  to  address  himself  to  the  propriety 
of  our  passing  the  resolution. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  May  I  ask.  Mr.  Chairman,  does  the  passage  of 
this  joint  resolution  necessarily  mean  the  dismemherment  of  any  of 
our  allies  ? 

The  CHAIRMAN.  It  docs  not  necessarily  mean  that ;  but  it  doe-  mean 
that  we  urge  action  by  our  commissioners  to  the  peace  conference 
which  would  lead  to  that.  This  resolution  requests  our  commissioners 
to  the  peace  conference  to  urge  the  freedom  and  separation  and  self- 
determination  of  Ireland.  If  that  does  not  mean  the  dismemberment 
of  the  British  Empire.  I  do  not  know  what  it  doe-  mean. 

Judge  ScANiiAN.  Mr.  Chairman,  we  have  a  set  program  this  even- 
ing, and  the  speakers,  because  of  the  fact  that  they  have  been  told 
that  they  are  going  to  be  limited  in  time,  have  been  trying  to  con- 
centrate their  thoughts,  and  its  would  probably  be  very  difficult  for 
them  to  go  into  that  phase  of  the  situation  at  this  time,  and  I  would 
suggest  that  to-morrow  morning  the  speakers  give  it  special  atten- 
tion. 

The  Chairman.  I  would  be  very  glad  if  some  one  would  deal  with 
that  phase  of  the  situation  before  the  conclusion  of  the  hearing. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Our  next  speaker.  Mr.  Chairman,  will  be  Mrs. 
Ellen  Kyan  Jolly,  of  Rhode  Island,  past  president  of  the  ladies' 
auxiliary  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  of  America. 

STATEMENT  OF  MRS.  ELLEN  RYAN  JOLLY,  LL.  D.,  OF  PAWTUCKET, 
R.  I.,  PAST  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  LADIES'  AUXILIARY  OF  THE 
ANCIENT  ORDER  OF  HIBERNIANS  IN  AMERICA. 

Mrs.  Joley.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee:  In 
the  few  minutes  allotted  me  to-night  to  address  you  upon  the  subject 
matter  of  these  resolutions.  I  shall  not  have  time  to  present  my  views 
as  fully  or  as  elaborately  as  I  would  wish.  For  TOO  years  the  Irish 
people  have  been  subjected  to  grievous  wrongs.  But  now  we  may 
entertain  the  hope  that  the  day  of  their  deliverance  is  not  far  distant. 
The  resolutions  before  you  provide  that  self-determination  shall  be 
given  to  the  people  of  Ireland:  that  they  shall  finally  and  for  all  time 
decide  for  themselves  the  system  of  government  under  which  they 
shall  live.  I  am  confident  that  this  honorable  committee  will  report 
;i  resolution  through  which  the  plenipotentiaries  at  the  peace  confer- 
ence on  the  soil  of  France,  representing  the  various  nations  of  the 
world,  will  be  apprised  of  the  widespread  conviction  in  America  that 
the  doctrine  of  self-determination  shall  be  applied  to  the  settlement 
of  the  Irish  question.  I  am  confident,  too.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentle- 
men of  the  committee,  that  Congress  will  pass  the  resolution,  for  no 
man  or  body  of  men  can  oppose  a  proposition  which  merely  makes  a 
request  that  freedom  to  choose  its  own  way  of  life  shall  be  granted 
to  a  long-suffering  people. 

I)i  the  early  days  of  this  country  there  lived  here  a  gentleman 
named  Charles  Thompson.   He  was  born  and  educated  in  the  north  of 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


33 


Ireland.  In  religion  he  was  a  Presbyterian  and,  like  every  true 
patriot,  he  knew  that  there  is  nothing  in  religion  unfavorable  to  free- 
dom. He  was  secretary  of  the  Continental  Congress  during  all  the 
deliberations  of  that  body.  After  the  passage  of  the  stamp  act  John 
Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  wrote  to  Charles  Thompson  and  said: 
"  My  dear  sir :  The  stamp  act  has  passed.  We  must  light  the  torch 
of  economy.''  But  the  Irish-born  Thompson  replied :  "  We  shall  light 
the  torch  of  national  independence."  That  was  the  spirit  which  ani- 
mated the  bosom  of  Thompson.  That  Avas  the  Irish  of  it.  Our  devo- 
tion to  that  doctrine,  Mr.  Chairman,  causes  us  to  assemble  here  to- 
n'oht.  We  are  here  in  liberty's  name.  '  We  are  here  to  ask  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  States  to  pass  a  resolution  whose  purpose  is  to 
penult  Ireland,  the  oldest  of  the  nations,  to  light  the  torch  of  Irish 
national  independence. 

]STo  one  who  knows  the  history  of  Ireland  or  the  history  of  the 
Irish  people  in  America  will  hesitate  to  lend  his  support  to  this 
meritorious  cause.  This  proposition  should  command — and  I  am 
sure  it  does  command — universal  assent.  It  involves  a  basic  prin- 
ciple of  government  which  can  not  be  stifled — the  fundamental  prin- 
ciple proclaimed  by  the  Revolutionary  fathers  of  America  which  will 
ring  down  through  the  ages  until  time  is  no  more — that  governments 
derive  their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed..  There 
were  28  persons  of  my  name  who  fought  at  Bunker  Hill,  28  Ryans, 
and  I  rejoice  that  their  names  will  ever  remain  upon  the  American 
roll  of  honor. 

The  Continental  Congress  was  composed  very  largely  of  men  of 
Irish  blood.  Up  to  the  coming  of  the  French,  the  Irish  in  the  Revo- 
lutionary War,  according  to  the  records  of  Galloway,  numbered  100 
to  1  in  comparison  with  the  other  European  nationals  who  partici- 
pated. They  stood  beside  Washington  and  supported'  him  through- 
out the  great  struggle.  They  were  with  him  at  Valley  Forge  when 
the  Tories  of  that  day  and  generation  were  breaking  his  heart. 

Ireland,  out  of  her  poverty,  has  contributed  much  to  America. 
Her  sons  have  always  been  ready  to  bear  their  portion  of  the  burden 
in  every  crisis  through  which  this  country  has  passed.  This  is  the 
record  of  history. 

The  names  of  Emmet,  Wolfe  Tone,  and  Lord  Fitzgerald  have 
been  prominently  mentioned  in  the  course  of  this  hearing  here  to-day, 
but  thus  far  no  one  has  mentioned  the  name  of  Flood.  Among  the 
most  illustrious  of  the  united  Irishmen  was  the  namesake  of  the 
chairman  of  this  committee.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  salute  you,  a  son  of 
the  Gael,  and  I  know  that  Ireland's  cause  must  be  safe  in  your 
hands. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Mr.  Chairman,  our  next  speaker  is  Mrs.  Mary  Mc- 
Whorter,  national  president  Ladies'  Auxiliary,  Ancient  Order  of 
Hibernians  of  America. 

STATEMENT  OF  MRS.  MARY  McWHORTER,  OF  CHICAGO,  ILL. 

Mrs.  McWhorter.  Mr,  Chairman  and  members  of  the  commit- 
tee, at  this  time  

Mr.  Kennedy  (interposing).  You  are  national  president  of  the 
Ladies'  Auxiliary  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  of  America? 


97017—19  3 


34 


THE  tBISH  QUESTION. 


Mrs.  McWhoeter.  Yes.  I  am  here;  Mr.  Chairman,  to  represent 
75,000  American  women — women  of  Irish  blood.  The  great  majority 
of  those  75,000  women  are  mothers  of  sons  who  have  made  a  wonder- 
ful contribution  to  present  American  history. 

Since  Good  Friday,  li)17,  when  our  great  President  Wilson  de- 
clared that  it  was  necessary  for  America  to  take  a  hand  in  settling 
European  troubles,  in  the  discharge  of  my  official  duties  T  have  visited 
no  less  than  30  States  in  the  Union.  1  have  spoken  in  towns  and 
villages  to  the  number  of  five  and  six  in  each  one  of  those  States,  and 
for  what  purpose?  To  cari'y  a  word  of  cheer  to  the  mothers  of  those 
boys  who  have  gone  over  there,  some  of  them  never  to  come  back, 
Mr.  Chairman. 

It  avus  my  particular  duty  to  carry  a  word  of  cheer  to  help  keep 
the  morale  of  my  people.  The  sons  that  those  mothers  gave  to 
American  greatness  were  sons  that  were  badly  needed  in  the  homes. 
Their  salaries  were  needed,  and  you  will  admit  that  a  soldier's  pay 
is  a  mighty  poor  substitute  for  the  salaries  those  boys  were  bringing 
in  weekly  to  the  mother  who  is  concerned  with  the  things  of  the 
home. 

The  statesmen  speak  in  great  big  terms  of  things  that,  God  help  us, 
we  poor  women  sometimes  do  not  understand,  and  yet  each  of  you 
gentlemen  owes  something  to  your  mothers;  you  owe  something  of 
your  position  to  your  mother;  and,  as  I  have  gone  among  those  poor 
mothers,  as  I  have  addressed  them,  I  have  tried  to  take  to  them  some- 
thing to  cheer  them  along,  because  this  war  came  upon  us  suddenly, 
and  a  great  many  of  them  did  not  understand  why  their  boys  were 
taken  out  of  their  homes  and  sent  over  there.  They  were  not  con- 
cerned very  much  with  the  things  outside  of  their  home.  The  world 
passed  on  and  left  them  behind,  if  you  will,  and  it  was  my  melancholy 
privilege  to  tell  groups  in  these  villages,  in  the  towns,  and  in  the  cities 
the  wonderful  way  that  the  administration  of  our  Government  was 
taking  care  of  the  material  comforts  and  needs  of  those  boys:  that 
they  need  not  have  any  fear  that  the  Government  of  the  United  States 
would  leave  any  stone  unturned  for  the  physical  safety  of  those  boys. 

Then  I  carried  a  word  of  cheer  about  the  spiritual  safety  of  the  boys. 

Each  time  I  made  my  talk  they  came  up  and  passed  by  me.  Press- 
ing my  hand  with  their  toil-worn  hands,  they  would  say,  "I  have 
one  boy,"  "  I  have  two  boys,"  "  I  have  three  boys,"  and  "  four  and 
five  over  there."  They  would  say.  "  Do  you  think,  Mrs.  MacWhorter, 
before  they  come  back  they  will  set  old  Ireland  free?  "  That  is  the 
burden  of  the  thoughts  of  the  women  I  represent  to-night, 

I  had  the  honor  to  come  to  Washington  last  July  to  represent  a 
mothers'  mission,  bearing  a  petition  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States  from  the  mothers,  asking  him.  in  the  name  of  their  boys,  that 
they  had  given  to  him,  to  vindicate  those  wonderful  principles  of 
democracy  that  nowhere  on  earth  will  you  find  the  principles  of 
democracy  kept  so  pure  and  so  fresh  as  in  this  great  American 
country  of  ours. 

I  came  here  from  Ireland  a  number  of  years  ago.  but  I  did  not 
come  here  in  a  spirit  of  hatred,  and  at  no  time  in  the  discharge  of  my 
official  duties  have  I  preached  a  legacy  of  hatred  to  my  people.  I 
have  preached  only  remembrance,  because  there  is  danger  in  forget - 
tins'.  But  as  the  vision  of  hope  has  flowered  forth  in  all  the  bright- 
ness and  puritv  of  that  land  over  there,  I  prayed  that  that  clear  land 


I 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION.  35 

would  some  time  come  into  her  own,  and  that  hope  was  never  brighter 
than  at  present. 

The  case  of  Ireland,  so  far,  has  been  taken  very  good  care  of. 
Other  distinguished  speakers  will  follow  me,  so  I  am  not  concerned 
with  facts  and  figures.  I  am  speaking  to  you  in  the  names  of  the 
mothers  of  those  boys  that  have  helped  to  make  such  a  wonderful 
record  for  our  America  on  the  other  side. 

You  have  heard  about  the  wonderful  contribution  that  Ireland 
has  made  to  American  greatness  and  to  the  world's  greatness,  if 
you  will.  Ireland,  bound  in  slavery,  making  such  a  wonderful  con- 
tribution to  the  greatness  of  this  country  and  other  countries  where 
they  have  obtained  a  foothold.  What,  then,  gentlemen  of  the  com- 
mittee, would  not  Ireland  free  accomplish  for  the  world's  greatness  ? 

Gentlemen  of  the  committee,  as  I  look  into  your  faces  I  feel  that 
there  is  not  one  among  you  who  will  fail  to  vote  favorably  on  this 
resolution,  so  that  it  may  come  before  the  great  body  of  lawmakers 
of  this  country  of  ours. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JOSEPH  McLAUGHLIN,  A  REPRESENTATIVE 
IN  CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  PENNSYLVANIA. 

Mr.  McLaughlin.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee  : 
For  this  early  opportunity  to  say  a  word  in  "support  of  the  resolution 
offered  by  me  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  on  December  2,  1918, 
on  the  right  of  Ireland  to  self-determination,  permit  me  to  tender  my 
most  sincere  thanks. 

Though  I  have  had  the  experience  one  derives  from  living  in  a 
country  that  is  governed  by  another  country  without  the  former 
country's  consent.  I  shall  leave  the  details  to  be  presented  by  some 
one  of  the  other  speakers  who  will  address  your  honorable  body  on 
this  subject. 

Asking  for  self-determination  for  Ireland  does  not  make  us  any 
less  Americans.  We  Americans  of  Irish  lienage  are  away  from  Ire- 
land— awav  forever — our  interest  being  based  on  the  justice  of  her 
cause  and  in  the  love  we  and  our  children  have  for  her.  Our  Ameri- 
canism can  not  be  consistently  challenged,  for  all  true  Americans  are 
friends  of  freedom,  and  can  not  advocate  freedom  for  all  the  world 
"and  ignore  Ireland.  It  is  a  fact,  indeed,  that  were  Ireland  free  to- 
morrow, we.  citizens  of  Irish  blood,  would  continue  to  make  our 
homes  here  in  America. 

Impoverished  and  misruled.  Ireland  offers  no  field  for  either  fame 
or  fortune.  It  has  been  truthfully  said  that  Ireland  is  a  fruitful 
mother  of  genius  but  a  barren  nurse.  England  appropriates  to  her- 
self the  fame  of  Ireland's  most  gifted  sons.  "She  has  gathered 
brilliant  Irishmen  as  she  would  have  gathered  diamonds  in  Irish 
fields.'7  In  the  eighteenth  century  she  closed  the  schools,  made  the 
teacher  a  felon,  and  afterwards  charged  the  people  with  ignorance. 

Do  you  wonder,  gentlemen,  that  Ireland  longs  and  prays  and  hopes 
for  the  right  of  determining  how  her  sons  shall  manage  the  govern- 
ment of  their  own  country  ?  It  is  certainly  no  more  "than  England 
would  demand  if  the  cases  were  reversed.  I  recall  that  Mr.  Froude. 
an  English  historian  of  the  last  century,  on  being  asked.  "What 
England  would  do  if  Ireland  treated  her  as  she  treated  Ireland?" 
replied :  "  Oh.  England  would  get  out  of  it  somehow."  Of  course, 
she  would,  and  she  would  be  justified  in  doing  so,  and  so  is  Ireland 


36 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


justified  tn  endeavoring  to  get  out  of  England's  clutches,  and  until 
she  docs,  the  world  will  not  have  been  made  safe  for  democracy. 

"  No  nation."  said  President  Wilson,  "  must  be  forced  under  a  sov- 
ereignty under  which  it  does  not  wish  to  live."  Ireland  to-day  is 
being  forced  under  a  sovereignty  under  which  it  does  not  wish  to  live. 
Mid  m  behalf  of  that  country,  T  am  here  to  ask  that  the  United  States 
Congress,  through  your  honorable  body,  urge  President  Wilson  to 
include  it  among  those  nations  for  which  he  will  demand  at  the  peace 
conference  the  right  of  self-determination. 

The  Irish  Nation  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  Europe.  It  possesses  a  his- 
tory reaching  back  to  the  earliest  acres  of  civilization.  Her  soldiers 
have  written  their  names  on  the  records  of  many  armies,  and  her 
statesmen  have  lent  their  intellects  to  the  service  of  many  nations. 
During  our  own  Revolution  no  more  potent  voice  was  raised  in  favor 
of  American  liberty  than  that  of  Ireland's  distinguished  statesman 
of  the  day — Edmund  Burke. 

The  armies  and  navy  of  the  Colonies  contained  a  large  percentage 
oi  men  of  Irish  blood — in  fact,  in  all  our  wars,  on  every  page  of  our 
history,  the  heroism  of  the  sons  of  Ireland  flashes  in  eager  service  in 
everything  that  contributed  to  the  power  and  glory  of  this  great  Re- 
public, these  sons  of  Erin  having  gladly  struck  and  died  for  the  land 
that  held  their  allegiance.  In  the  late  war,  the  war  waged  by  our 
country  for  the  vindication  of  the  principles  of  democracy,  citizens 
of  Irish  blood  were  among  the  first  to  give  unquestioned  loyalty  to 
authority. 

Ireland  was  made  a  nation  by  Almighty  God.  She  is  the  real 
mother  of  Parliaments.  She  was  old  when  Christianity  exiled  the 
Druids  from  their  sacrificial  forests.  Her  commerce  was  known 
throughout  the  then  known  world.  Her  military  fame  was  equally 
celebrated.  Her  soldiers  trampled  down  the  Roman  fortifications 
and  were  ascending  the  Alps  when  lightning  struck  down  their 
daring  leader.   The  English  yoke  is  naturally  galling  to  them. 

England's  blighting  rule  has  done  more  than  impoverish  the  peo- 
ple of  Ireland.  She  frowned  the  name  of  Ireland  out  of  Goldsmith's 
"  Deserted  Village " — made  her  own  of  Tom  Moore — starved  Ed- 
mund Burke  into  giving  her  the  matchless  service  of  his  life — hid 
away  the  distinguished  grandson  of  Richard  Brinsley  Sheridan  un- 
der the  title  of  Lord  Dufferin — disguised  the  brilliant  Henry  Temple 
as  Lord  Palmerston,  and,  among  thousands  of  others,  transformed 
Margaret  Power  into  the  Countess  of  Blessington.  When  the  con- 
queror tells  us  that  "  all  the  good  and  great  and  illustrious  that  we 
produce  are  his,  and  that  all  the  evil  and  passionate  and  worthless 
that  we  produce  are  ours,"  we  experience  the  bitterest  pang  of  con- 
quest. This  was  the  spirit  that  took  from  Ireland  the  honor  and 
profit  of  thousands  of  Irish  men  and  Irish  women  who  have  won 
distinction  in  letters,  law,  science,  war,  and  statesmanship. 

If  Ireland  be  given  the  right  of  self-determination — given  the 
right  to  work  out  her  own  salvation  in  her  own  way  and  to  develop 
her  powers  and  resources — her  men  and  women  of  genius  will  nqt 
have  to  seek  other  fields  for  the  employment  and  development  of 
their  talents — these  fields  will  be  found  at  home,  and  the  great- 
ness of  the  country  will  be  correspondingly  enriched.  England  can 
starve  and  oppress'  Ireland,  but  she  can  neither  conquer  nor  annihilate 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


37 


her.  She  can  sweep  millions  of  the  Irish  people  out  of  the  country 
and  fill  it  with  other  races,  but  even  then  the  latent  life  in  the  soil, 
the  traditions,  the  sacrifices,  the  buried  patriotism  would  come  out 
and  be  breathed  into  the  blood  of  the  newcomers,  until,  in  a  genera- 
tion or  two,  they  would  be  as  strong  Irish  (those  that  were  not 
enjoying  some  special  privileges)  in  their  sentiments  and  aspirations 
as  the  original  Irish  Celt. 

Neither  Sarsfield  nor  Emmet,  two  of  Ireland's  most  idolized 
patriots,  were  of  the  ancient  race,  and  a  reading  of  a  list  of  the 
latest  victims  of  English  misrule  will  reveal  names  of  men  not  of 
Irish  origin,  yet  men  who  proved  they  were  "  more  Irish  than  the 
Irish  themselves." 

We  wish  to  see  Ireland  take  her  place  among  the  nations  of  the 
earth.  It  is  not  a  selfisli  ambition,  and  we,  consequently,  gentlemen, 
count  on  your  powerful  assistance :  we  wish  to  see  her  made  a  coun- 
try in  which  her  sons  and  daughters  may  win  coronets  more  precious 
than  ever  conferred  on  either  king  or  kaiser — coronets  awarded  be- 
cause of  intellectual  eminence. 

We  desire  that  Ireland's  claim  to  a  place  at  the  peace  conference 
be  heeded,  and  it  is  my  firm  conviction  that  Ireland,  blessed  with 
the  right  of  self-determination,  the  name  of  our  great  President  will 
be  breathed  as  a  benediction  by  millions  now  living  and  millions  yet 
unborn  for  his  championship  of  the  rights  of  small  nations. 

In  the  late  war,  the  war  waged  by  our  country  for  the  vindication 
of  the  principles  of  democracy,  citizens  of  Irish  blood  were  among 
the  first  to  give  unquestioned  loyalty  to  authority.  As  national  presi- 
dent of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  of  America,  the  representa- 
tive organization  of  the  Irish  race  in  this  continent,  on  February  5, 
1917,  two  months  before  the  declaration  of  war,  I  telegraphed  Presi- 
dent Wilson  from  Philadelphia  "  the  unswerving  loyalty  of  250.000 
Hibernians  in  America  in  any  conflict  that  might  arise  between  this 
and  any  nation  in  the  world."  The  President's  reply,  sent  on  the 
following  day,  read : 

Your  generous  message  of  February  5,  pledging  the  administration  the  un- 
swerving loyalty  of  250.000  members  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  is 
very  heartening  to  me,  and  I  thank  you  and  them  for  this  inspiring  reassur- 
ance." 

How  well  that  pledge  was  fulfilled  was  seen  even  in  those  trying 
days  which  preceded  the  processes  incident  to  the  application  of  con- 
scription, the  voluntary  enlistment  of  citizens  of  Irish  blood,  proving 
their  eagerness  to  serve  and  defend  the  Nation.  The  pledge  was  ful- 
filled in  all  the  various  war  efforts  of  the  fraternity  and  the  race — 
efforts  on  the  enumeration  of  which  it  is  now  needless  to  dwell. 

On  Avar  being  declared,  the  National  Hibernian,  the  official  organ 
of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  in  America,  said  editorially : 

There  comes  a  time  in  the  life  of  nations,  as  of  individuals,  when  the  issue  is 
life  or  death,  honor  or  shame.  Such  a  time  now  exists.  Old  prejudices,  old 
suspicions,  ancient  wrongs,  and  memories  of  injustice  and  the  traditions  of 
defe;it  are  swept  away  in  the  supreme  test  of  loyalty  to  the  institutions  of  the 
great  Republic.  The  conditions  which  now  confront  the  Nation  are  not  to  be 
changed  by  words :  they  can  only  be  ruled  by  the  sword.  The  opinions  of  citi- 
zens are  puerile;  the  fiat  of  the  Government  at  Washington  is  vital.  There  is 
now  but  one  law — instant  and  unquestioning  obedience  to  the  voice  of  authority. 
The  man  who  quibbles  is  a  fool  :  the  man  who  hesitates  is  a  coward;  the  man 
who  defies  is  a  traitor. 


3S 


TELE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  casualty  lists  proved  beyond  all  <loul>t  the  Whole-iieated  Irish 
participation  in  the  war  which  followed  this  call-to  'arms.  In  thoir 
enthusiasm  citizens  of  Irish  blood  swept  over  all  barriers  of  remem- 
bered wrong  to  sustain  America's  declaration  to  make  the  world  safe 
for  demo  racy.  The  Irish  race  in  America  has  never  remained  aloof 
from  any  of  the  responsibilities  of  citizenship.  It  has  ever  sought  its 
burdens  and  borne  them  with  honor  and  with  a  loyal  determination 
t;>  justify  the  reputation  of  its  sons  for  patriotism,  they  being  Ameri- 
cans from  the  moment  their  feet  toneh  American  soil.  Onr  race 
stood  beside  (he  cradle  of  Ainerica.  Irish  soldiers  followed  Mont- 
gomery to  Quebec:  charged  with  Moylan \  struggled  over  the  wall  at 
Bennington  with  Stark;  crowded  through  the  gates  of  Stony  Point 
with  Mad  Anthony  Wayne:  rushed  with  Gen.  Hand  at  Brandywine 
Springs;  and,  chargecl  with  Fitzgerald  at  Monmouth.  They  climbed 
over  the  sides  of  hostile  ships  with  Jack  Barry,  father  of  the  Ameri- 
can  Navy;  were  with  Jeremiah  O'Brien  when  he  fought  the  first  sea 
fight  of  the  Revolution:  and  with  Gen.  Sullivan  when  he  fought  the 
first  land  battle;  and  Were  in  the  Mexican  War  with  Shields  and 
Kearney.  They  charged  with  Meagher  at  Marys  Heights;  with 
Sheridan  when  he  snatched  victory  from  the  jaws  of  defeat  at  Win- 
chester; stood  in  the  breach  at  Gettysburg;  died  in  the  swamps  of 
Chiclcahominy :  and  fell  like  wheat  before  the  reaper  on  the  sides  of 
Malvern  Hill.  They  stood  on  every  field  from  Balls  Bluff  to  Appo- 
i  ': ti '  x.  wearing  the  grey  under  the  dauntless  Pat  Cleburne  as  proudly 
as  they  wore  the  blue  under  the  gallant  Phil  Sheridan.  They  fought 
in  the  late  war — the  war  for  democracy — with  the  old  spirit,  with  the 
spirit  that  has  breathed  through  their  history  for  a  hundred  genera- 
tions of  Saints  and  scholars  and  soldiers:  that  spirit  wdrich  lives 
triumphant  after  armies  have  been  destroyed — the  immortal  spirit  of 
human  liberty  which  survives  all  its  champions. 

Centuries  before  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  declared 
war  for  the  freedom  of  small  nations,  countless  millions  of  the  Irish 
race  had  registered  a  vow  to  live  and  die  for  the  freedom  of  their  own 
small  nation.  When  this  Government  chose  the  path  of  war  and  an- 
nounced to  the  world  that  the  sword  would  not  be  sheathed  until  the 
world  Was  made  «afe  for  democracy — until  all  the  small  nations  of 
Europe  were  accorded  the  right  of  -elf -determination— the  right  of 
determining  for  themselves,  by  a  majority  vote,  under  what  form  of 
government  they  would  live — can  you  wonder  that  the  sons  and 
daughters  of  Erin  in  every  land  are  thrilled  with  the  prospect  of  a 
free  Ireland  ? 

At  the  peace  conference  they  will  look  to  President  Wilson,  repre- 
senting the  most  powerful  of  the  free  nations  of  the  world,  to  demand 
that  the  chain  which  has  so  long  fettered  the  aspirations  of  their 
race  shall  be  broken,  and  they  look  hopefully  to  this  Committee  on 
Foreign  Affairs  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  to  encourage 
and  sustain  him  in  that  demand,  to  the  extent  of  reporting  favorably 
to  the  House  of  Representatives  the  resolution  introduced  by  me 
requesting  that  Ireland  be  granted  the  right  of  self-determination. 

No  force  is  more  potent  in  the  destiny  of  a  race  or  a  nation  than 
its  ideals.  The  similarity  of  the  ideals  of  America  and  Ireland  are 
striking.  The  people  of  both  nations  have  followed  freedom  as  a 
beacon  through  the  clouds  of  war  and  the  mists  of  peace.   The  Irish 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


39 


people  and  the  people  of  America  have  fixed  their  faith  upon  the 
rights  of  men  to  life,  liberty,  and  happiness. 

In  conclusion,  gentlemen,  I  appeal  for  your  favorable  action  on 
this  resolution — appeal  to  your  high  sense  of  justice  and  real  Ameri- 
canism— that  the  call  of  Ireland  may  be  answered — that  she  may 
enjoy  the  realization  of  a  deathless  ideal — Ireland  a  nation ! 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  JOHN  A.  MURPHY,  OF  BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Murphy.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
represent,  in  a  general  way,  the  business  aspect  of  the  city  of  Buffalo. 
I  have  for  30  years  been  in  business  there.  At  a  recent  meeting  of 
the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  Buffalo  one  of  the  most  enthusiastic 
statements  was, received  by  the  membership  of  that  organization  in 
regard  to  self-determination  for  Ireland.  That  organization,  as  a 
pure  business  organization  of  the  city  of  Buffalo,  manifested  beyond 
a  shadow  of  a  doubt  that  the  business  heart,  the  professional  heart 
of  the  average  American  citizen,  regardless  of  his  blood  or  descent, 
is  unquestionably  in  favor  of  the  intervention  by  the  United  States 
on  the  question  of  Irish  self-determination. 

If  our  own  great  President  desired  any  limitations  upon  the  appli- 
cation of  that  principle  which  he  has  enunciated,  both  on  our  entrance 
into  the  war  and  on  the  14  points  upon  which  he  has  said  to  the 
world  peace  shall  be  declared,  he  would  have  said  so.  He  said  what 
he  meant,  and  he  meant  what  he  said. 

The  only  premises  upon  which  the  application  of  those  principles 
can  poosibly  be  argued  or  denied  is  on  the  ground  that  Ireland  is  not 
a  nation.  He  has  unqualifiedly  spoken  for  all  nations.  If.  gentle- 
men, the  objections  we  hear  raised  were  to  be  raised  at  any  time  that 
the  relation  between  England  and  Ireland  is  a  domestic  question  and 
not  an  international  one,  then  was  the  time  for  that  question  to  have 
been  raised. 

The  Chairman.  When  we  entered  the  war? 

Mr.  Murphy.  When  we  entered  the  war  and  when  our  cohelliger- 
ents  accepted  our  aid,  when  our  declaration  of  principles  was  made 
for  the  purpose  of  winning  the  war,  upon  those  grounds  our  aid  was 
then  accepted.  Then  the  words  of  our  President  were  accepted,  at 
least  tacitly,  by  the  world,  and  the  aid  we  gave  and  the  help  we  sent 
in  men,  money,  and  in  munitions  justify  us  in  insisting  that  his  dec- 
larations be  now  applied  in  their  entirety.  I  have  a  son  over  there, 
and  he  went  when,  the  President  called  him,  or  he  would  be  no  son 
of  mine. 

My  point  is  that  Europe,  inviting  us  to  participate,  and  we  accept- 
ing their  invitation,  having  set  forth  the  terms  upon  which  we  were 
entering  the  war,  that  if  England  or  any  other  nation  desired  to 
raise  objection  to  our  terms,  that  was  the  time  to  raise  the  objections 
or  forever  after  hold  their  peace. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  And  they  are  now  estopped  ? 

Mr.  Murphy.  And  they  are  now  estopped.  I  am  not  a  lawyer,  but 
I  know  what  that  term  means. 

Xow.  the  question  is,  Is  Ireland  a  nation?  I  will  take  you  to  the 
English  statute  books  to  prove  it. 

In  1782  what  is  known  as  Grattan's  statute  was  enacted.  Grattan 
was  assisted  in  securing  its  enactment  by  that  illustrious  namesake 


40 


THE  IRIbH  QUESTION. 


of  the  chairman  of  this  committee^  Flood,  and  they  placed  upon  the 
statute  books  of  the  English  Parliament  a  law  which  was  in  brief  a 
declaration  by  the  English  Parliament  that  no  power  or  authority 
Ma^  to  be  exercised  over  the  people  of  Ireland  except  their  own  power 
and  authority,  and  that  nobody  but  the  people  themselves  had  the 
power  to  bind  the  people  of  Ireland. 

For  a  period  of  18  years  following  the  passage  of  that  act  Ireland 
was  comparatively  free.  It  is  true  the  same  King  occupied  the  two 
thrones,  but  they  were  economically  and  politically  apart.  During 
that  period  of  18  years  of  limited  suffrage  I  venture  to  say  that  no 
other  country  of  Europe  showed  like  period  of  prosperity  and 
absence  of  turmoil  and  trouble. 

The  Chairman.  Do  you  recall  to  what  extent  the  population  in- 
creased at  that  time? 

Mr.  Murphf.  Not  alone  the  population  increased  but  the  indus- 
tries and  wealth  of  the  country  were  greatly  enhanced  under  the 
Grattan-Flood  Parliament,  but  I  have  not  the  exact  figures  here. 

Mr.  Porter.  I  would  suggest  if  they  have  census  reports  of  Ireland 
we  would  like  to  have  them  filed. 

Mr.  Murphy.  We  have  some  statistics  of  Irish  population  here. 
I  now  wish  to  take  up  another  point  in  reference  to  this  question, 
Mr.  Chairman.  It  was  my  fortune  to  visit  Ireland  two  years  ago  as 
a  member  of  the  American  relief  commission  for  Ireland,  of  which 
the  three  cardinals  were  honorary  presidents,  and  made  the  arrange- 
ments by  which  over  $200,000  were  sent  from  America  to  relieve  the 
widows  and  orphans  and  suffering  and  hunger  and  want  that  existed 
by  reason  of  the  rebellion  in  Ireland  during  Easter  week,  1916. 

I  found  that  Ireland  is  as  firmly  held  under  martial  law  as  Bel- 
gium had  ever  been  held.  I  drove  with  Sir  John  Maxwell  and  his 
chief  of  staff  through  Phoenix  Park.  Dublin,  and  Sir  John  Maxwell 
said  to  me.  "  Outside  of  the  sedition  Ireland  is  practically  crimeless." 
Those  are  his  words;  that  outside  of  sedition — that  was  his  defini- 
tion of  the  uprising — that  Ireland  was  practically  crimeless. 

Then  we  saw  the  streets  of  Dublin.  It  occupied  a  week.  There 
were  30  blocks  in  the  heart  of  the  city  which  were  leveled  by  in- 
cendiary shells  and  something  over  $30,000,000  of  damage  inflicted 
upon  the  civil  population. 

The  Chairman.  Is  it  not  a  fact  that  the  number  of  volunteers  from 
Ireland,  in  comparison  to  population,  compares  very  favorably  with 
the  number  from  Scotland? 

Mr.'  Murphy.  This  is  the  history  of  the  war  in  Ireland,  that  for 
the  first  six  months  of  the  war  Earl  Grey  said  in  all  the  terrible  busi- 
ness Ireland  was  the  one  bright  spot.  The  devastation  of  Belgium 
appealed  to  the  Irish,  as  a  matter  of  sympathy,  in  a  most  extraordi- 
nary manner.  The  volunteering  in  Ireland  at  that  time  was  greater 
than  in  England  for  a  certain  period.  '  Then  home  rule,  instead  of 
being  put  into  law,  and  the  good  faith  of  England  having  been 
pledged  to  its  fulfillment,  was  pigeonholed  and  indefinitely  post- 
poned. That  is  what  Mr.  Lloyd-George  then  termed  a  piece  of 
u  malignant  stupidity,"  and  nothing  but  malingnant  stupidity  could 
have  so  changed  the  heart  of  Ireland  from  what  it  was  at  the  out- 
set of  the  war. 

Reallv.  "malignant  stupidity"  is  a  fair  and  honest  description  of 
the  dealings  of  England  with  Ireland,  because  any  other  nation  on 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


41 


earth  would  have  found  comfort  and  support  in  a  sister  isle,  after  all 
this  period,  if  it  had  been  managed  in  any  other  way  than  with  ma- 
lignant stupidity. 

Now.  I  think  one  of  the  questions  that  is  occupying  }*our  minds  is 
the  right  or  propriety  of  our  entering  into  the  question  as  an  outside 
nation.  I  have  endeavored  to  show  that  anybody  is  estopped  from 
objection  on  that  ground.  I  have  endeavored  to  show  that  Ireland 
is  a  nation,  and  I  am  not  going  to  take  your  time  to  prove  that.  Its 
history,  its  people,  its  art,  its  literature,  and  language  have  all  shown 
that. 

Among  the  handicaps  to-day  on  Irish  industries  are : 

(1)  The  unparalleled  conditions  of  the  Irish  railways,  controlled 
by  boards  of  English  directors,  with  freight  rates  that  prohibit  all 
successul  competition. 

(2)  Unfavorable  conditions  impcsed  by  Irish  bankers,  who  are  con- 
trolled by  the  Bank  of  England. 

(3)  Through  the  practical  closing  of  Irish  ports  and  gradual  ab- 
sorption of  the  Irish  merchant  marine  Ireland  is  compelled  to  export 
through  English  middle  men. 

(4)  The  consequent  dependence  of  marineless  Ireland  upon  Eng- 
land for  the  raw  material  necessary  for  manufacturers. 

(5)  The  excessive  price  of  coal  in  Ireland,  because  the  English- 
controlled  railways  in  Ireland  have  consistently  refused  to  build  spur 
lines  to  Irish  coal  mines,  and  the  Irish  manufacturer  is  compelled  to 
buy  Welsh  coal. 

(6)  The  deliberate  policy  of  both  political  parties  in  England  to 
prevent  the  industrial  development  in  Ireland,  a  policy  which  Arthur 
Chamberlain  condemned  in  Dublin  in  1896.  (See  statement  of  Ar- 
thur Chamberlain  to  Arthur  Griffith  in  Dublin.  July.  1907;  Nation- 
ality, July  31,  1915,  Miss  Hughes's  remarks,  p.  75.) 

(7)  English  buyers  mainly  demand  Ireland's  cattle  on  the  hoof. 
There  are  some  1*2.000.000  acres  of  grazing  land  in  the  country,  on 
which  only  the  young  cattle  are  raised  and  shipped  across  the  channel 
to  England,  where  they  are  fattened  and  then  killed  and  dressed  in 
English  abattoirs  and  sold  back  to  the  Irish  people  as  "  English  prime 
beef."  The  English  middle  men  in  this  way  cause  a  loss  to  Ireland  of 
some  $5  per  animal,  as  well  as  the  valuable  by-products,  and  the  Irish 
land  suffers  from  the  loss  of  the  manure.  There  are  few  large  cattle 
slaughterhouses  in  Ireland. 

Living  for  21  years  in  Ireland,  and  having  visited  it  so  many  times 
since  I  left  there,  having  been  in  many  of  the  counties  of  Ireland  more 
than  once,  and  having  been  in  all  of  them  at  least  once,  and  having 
a  larger  acquaintance  through  the  length  and  breadth  of  Ireland  than 
almost  any  man  who  has  visited  there.  I  want  to  say  to  you.  Mr. 
Chairman  and  gentlemen,  that  the  Ulster  question  is  a  myth ;  it  is  a 
straw  man  set  up  to  perpetrate  an  injustice. 

I  wish  I  could  read  to  you  the  official  proclamation  of  the  Irish 
Republic  on  Easter  Monday,  1916.  It  was  without  malice  and  hate, 
and  without  religious  animosity  of  any  sort  or  character. 

It  seems  to  me  almost  incumbent  upon  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  to  maintain  the  honor  and  dignity  and  prestige  of  the  Presi- 
dent.   He  has  a  long  vision:  seeing  beyond  to-day  and  to-morrow. 


42 


1  ll  E  [BISH  QUESTION. 


and  be  sees  thai  there  is  being  offered  to  Europe  a  new  thought  and 
a  new  right,  and  through  him  I  hope,  sir,  and  believe,  the  world  will 
have  achieved  emancipation  and  freedom  that  might  be  likened  even 
to  the  freedom  of  the  world  that  was  born  at  the  crucifixion,  2,000 
years  ago. 

Mr.  IvAc.sDALE.  The  chairman  asked  you  as  to  the  relative  number 
of  men  who  went  into  the  army  from  Ireland,  Scotland,  and  Eng- 
land. Have  you  the  figures?  That  is,  the  relative  number  of  men 
who  served  as  volunteers  in  this  war? 

Mr.  Murphy.  While  I  wag  there  in  July,  of  1916.  I  was  informed 
that  up  to  that  period  170,000  had  joined  the  colors  in  Ireland  from 
the  entrance  into  the  war  up  to  the  time  of  the  revolution.  This 
was  Li)  addition  to  the  number  of  Irishmen  in  the  regular  army  of 
England  prior  to  the  war. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  One  hundred  and  seventy  thousand? 

Mr.  Murphy.  Yes. 

Mr.  Porter.  Does  that  exclude  the  Irish  in  Scotland  and  Wales? 

Mr.  Murphy.  Yes,  sir;  it  is  just  the  Irish  from  Ireland. 

Mr.  Porter.  Have  you  an  estimate  as  to  that  number? 

Judge  Scanlan.  The  report  of  Lord  Wimborne  to  Kitchener,  in 
July,  1916,  showed  that  there  were  Irishmen  in  the  regular  army  in 
1916.  51,046,  including  those  in  the  regular-army  reserve;  that  the 
Irish  enlistments  to  1916  were  170,000;  that  the  Irishmen  in  English 
and  Scotch  regiments  numbered  over  35,000;  that  the  Irishmen  in 
the  navy  8,456,  with  7,000  later  recruits,  making  a  total  of  Irishmen 
in  the  army  and  navy  of  over  271,592.  Then  there  were  in  the  naval 
reserves  over  4.000,  which  made  a  grand  total  of  over  275,592. 

Mrs.  B.  J.  Mahoney.  Mr.  Redmond  demanded  on  the  floor  of  the 
House  of  Commons  to  know  how  many  Irishmen  had  volunteered 
during  1916,  and  the  figures  given  were  170,000  from  Ireland. 

On  a  careful  estimation  it  is  evident  that  Irishmen  in  the  British 
forces,  including  those  from  Canada,  Australia,  South  Africa,  Xew 
Zealand,  England,  Scotland,  and  Wales,  totaled  more  than  500,000. 

Judge  Scanlan.  It  was  stated  in  the  British  Parliament  a  year 
after  the  war  began  that  Ireland  had  shamed  England  in  the  matter 
of  volunteering  for  the  army. 

The  Chairman.  As  I  understand  it,  the  population  able  to  bear 
arms  was  778,631,  and  there  were  in  the  regular  army  and  of  those 
who  volunteered  and  in  the  Xavy  275,000. 

Mr.  Murphy.  Yes:  and  that  the  casualty  rate  was  greater  among 
them  than  any  other  arm  of  the  British  service. 

Mr.  Chairman,  having  interviewed  a  large  number  of  men  in  Ire- 
land both  before  and  after  the  Irish  uprising  I  found  no  hatred  of 
England  in  Ireland.  I  found  no  pro-Germanism.  I  found  nothing 
that  would  not  permit  Irishmen  to  live  in  harmony  and  peace  with 
Englishmen;  all  they  wanted  was  to  control  their  own  destiny. 

Mr.  Porter.  Is  there  any  embargo  on  the  shipment  of  manufac- 
tured goods  from  Ireland  to  the  ports  of  France  and  England? 

Mr.  Murphy.  You  can  not  ship  them  there  direct.  No  line  is 
drawn,  but  you  can  not  ship  if  you  have  not  the  connections  and  if 
your  banker  is  tied  by  a  contract  from  your  London  house.  There 
is  no  law  on  the  statute  books  against  it,  but  there  is  something  more 
potent  than  law. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


43 


Mr.  Porter.  Does  this  something  more  potent  than  law  prevent 
Ireland  from  shipping  manufactured  goods  directly  to  America? 
Mr.  Murphy.  Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  You  maintain  that  the  control  of  English  shipping 
makes  it  impossible  for  the  Irish  manufacturer  to  find  any  markets 
abroad? 

Mr.  Murphy.  The  fact  that  the  Irish  manufacturer  must  ship 
through  England  militates  in  various  ways  against  the  successful 
competition  of  Irish  goods  in  foreign  markets. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  PABRAIC  COLUM,  REPRESENTING  THE  IRISH 
PROGRESSIVE  LEAGUE  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Colum.  Mr.  Chairman.  I  represent  the  Irish  Progressive 
League  of  New  York,  and  desire  to  reply  to  an  inquiry  that  one  of 
your  members  asked  of  us  this  morning.  The  inquiry  was.  How 
would  a  separate  Ireland  organize  itself.  I  think  you  also  had  in 
mind  what  relations  a  separate  Ireland  would  have  to  the  minority, 
and  with  England,  and  I  am  here  to  reply  briefly  to  that  inquiry. 

I  think  you  also  had  in  mind  that  Ireland  was  very  small  and 
very  poor,  and  could  not  maintain  a  separate  existence.  I  would 
like  to  show  you  a  comparison  between  Ireland  and  ether  small  and 
independent  nations  in  Europe.  Denmark  has  an  area  of  15,338 
square  miles  \  Ireland  has  an  area  of  32.571  square  miles.  The  normal 
revenue  of  Denmark  in  recent  years  was  about  $38,000,000.  whereas 
the  revenue  raised  in  Ireland  in  1017  was  over  $140,000,000.  That 
is  overtaxation,  and  the  result  of  such  overtaxation  has  produced  the 
deepest  sort  of  economic  degradation  in  Ireland. 

Perhaps  you  will  be  surprised  to  learn  that  Ireland  has  the  lowest 
marriage  rate  in  Europe.  The  people  in  Ireland  marry  at  a  much 
later  age  than  any  people  in  Europe. 

As  regards  the  organization  of  a  separate  Ireland,  that  organiza- 
tion would  be  republican,  and  the  policy  of  that  republican  Ireland 
was  announced  in  the  proclamation  of  the  Irish  republic  in  Easter 
week,  1916.  It  guaranteed  the  freedom  of  religion,  freedom  from 
tests  to  every  minority  in  Ireland,  and  it  was  promulgated  at  that 
time  to  give  the  franchise  immediately  to  the  women  of  the  country. 
We  would  be  perfectly  willing  that  the  minority  in  Ireland  should 
have  a  local  organization,  to  look  after  their  economic  interests, 
etc.,  provided,  of  course,  that  organization  did  not  break  up  the 
unity  of  the  country. 

Some  gentlemen  to-day  asked  as  to  the  propriety  of  this  country 
proposing  that  a  cobelligerent  of  this  country  should  dismember 
itself.  You  will  remember,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  that  proposition,  if 
it  is  a  proposition  for  dismemberment,  has  already  been  made  by  a 
great  English  party,  the  English  labor  party,  when  they  declared 
that  Ireland  should  be  freed.  If  it  is  asking  a  cobelligerent  of 
America  to  dismember  herself,  a  great  English  party  has  already 
declared  that  that  should  be  done. 

Mr.  Chairman,  I  should  like  you  to  know  of  an  announcement 
made  by  Prof.  McNeill,  one  of  the  Sinn  Fein  leaders.  He  has  said 
in  an  article  in  the  English  Review  that  what  is  holding  the  world 


44 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


back  is  the  ideas  of  the  eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries,  which 
are  now  out  of  date — the  idea  that  all  States  are  sovereign  and  hide- 
pendent.  The  idea  of  the  twentieth  century  must  be  that  States  are 
not  independent,  but  arc  interdependent,  that  they  are  interdepend- 
ent upon  each  other  just  as  individuals  in  society  are  interdependent, 
and  that  idea  is  the  one  which  President  Wilson  advocates,  and  it  is 
found  to  prevail  all  over  the  world.  In  a  society  of  nations,  inter- 
dependent, there  need  be  no  conflict  between  Ireland  and  England. 

The  republican  organization  in  Ireland  is  exceedingly  strong. 
The  general  election  is  scheduled  for  England  and  Ireland  this 
week.  Already  the  Irish  Republic  party  of  Ireland  has  won  25 
seats  absolutely  uncontested;  that  is  to  say,  one-quarter  of  the 
possible  seats  in  Ireland  are  handed  over  without  a  contest  to  the 
Irish  Republic  party,  which  shows  how  strongly  the  Irish  Republic 
party  is  .organized  in  Ireland  and  with  what  loyalty  the  people  of 
Ireland  back  that  organization.  It  is  very  surprising  that  the  organi- 
zation of  the  Irish  Republic  party  is  so  strong,  considering  that  all  of 
the  leaders  of  that  organization,  with  one  exception,  Prof.  McNeill,  are 
imprisoned  and  have  been  in  prison  since  last  May  and  will  not  b<?. 
given  a  trial,  but  will  very  likely  be  held  in  prison  until  after  tho 
general  elections. 

Mr.  Chairman,  I  would  like  to  say  also  that  a  free  Ireland  will  also 
mean  that  Great  Britain  would  be  freed  from  many  of  the  perplexi- 
lies  which  sorely  try  her.  The  most  unholy  form  of  government  in 
the  world  is  trie  government  of  one  country  by  another  country. 
It  is  bad  for  both  countries.  Great  Britain  will  be  far  more  secure 
when  she  agrees  to  self-determination  for  Ireland  than  she  is  at  the 
present.  At  the  moment  Great  Britain  has  a  bad  conscience  about 
Ireland.  She  can  not  urge  many  measures,  because  the  question 
would  be  asked,  "What  about  Ireland?  " 

We  are  asked  how  about  this  Irish  minority  in  the  matter  of  self- 
deternrination  ?  The  minority  vote  in  other  countries  is  much  larger 
and  better  organized  than  the  same  sort  of  a  minority  in  Ireland. 
In  Bohemia  there  is  a  large  German  population — having  all  the  in- 
dustries and  all  the  high  positions — that  is  completely  against 
Czecho-Slovak  self-determination,  and  yet  the  Bohemians  are  going 
to  set  up  a  separate  organization,  they  are  going  to  treat  the  minority 
well,  just  as  we  are  going  to  treat  our  minority  well. 

I  thank  you  exceedingly.  Mr.  Chairman,  for  your  patient  hearing. 

Mr.  Porter.  Can  you  tell  us  what  percentage  of  the  $140,000,000 
raised  by  taxes  is  expended  in  Ireland? 

Mr.  Colum.  It  is  very  difficult  to  tell  that,  for  this  reason,  that 
there  is  no  separate  Irish  budget,  but  it  is  in  the  neighborhood  of 
$50,000,000. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Did  they  not  have  a  financial  commission  in  1894 
which  went  into  that  question? 
Mr.  Colum.  Yes. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  What  was  the  conclusion  of  that  committee? 

Mr.  Colum.  The  conclusion  was  that  Ireland  had  been  overtaxed 
to  the  extent  of  $15,000,000  a  year  over  and  above  what  the  committee 
considered  Ireland's  proper  contribution  to  cover  expenditures  in 
Ireland  and  to  the  imperial  exchequer.  The  inquiry  went  back  for 
about  80  years.    There  have  been  no  separate  Irish  accounts.  One 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


45 


and  one-half  billion  dollars  now  is  owed  by  England  to  Ireland,  for 
which  they  have  never  made  a  single  cent  of  recompense  since  1818, 
and  that  does  not  take  into  consideration  the  very  large  amount  Eng- 
land has  gotten  from  Ireland  since  the  beginning  of  this  war. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Do  you  mean  to  say  that  a  financial  commission  re- 
ported that  England  owes  that  amount  to  Ireland  ? 

Mr.  Colum.  Yes.  The  commission  was  ordered  by  Gladstone,  and 
then,  Gladstone  having  gone  out  of  power%the  succeeding  govern- 
ment failed  to  carry  out  the  recommendations  of  the  commission.  It 
is  called  the  report  of  the  Guilders  commission. 

Mr.  Sabath.  In  what  vear  was  this  report  made  1 

Mr.  Colum.  In  1894  and  1895. 

The  findings  of  the  Royal  commission  on  the  financial  relations 
between  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  were : 

I.  That  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  must,  for  the  purpose  of  this  inquiry,  be 
•considered  as  separate  entities. 

II.  That  the  act  of  union  imposed  upon  Ireland  a  burden  which,  as  eve  its 
showed,  she  was  unable  to  bear. 

III.  That  the  increase  of  taxation  laid  upon  Ireland  between  1853  and  1860 
was  not  justified  by  the  then  existing  circumstances. 

IV.  That  identity  of  rates  of  taxation  does  not  necessarily  involve  equality  of 
burden. 

V.  That,  whilst  the  actual  tax  revenue  of  Ireland  is  about  one-eleventh  of 
that  of  Great  Britain,  the  relative  taxable  capacity  of  Ireland  is  very  much 
smaller  and  is  not  estimated  by  any  of  us  as  exceeding  one-twentieth. 

Mr.  Guilders,  the  first  chairman  of  the  commission,  in  his  report 
states,  with  regard  to  the  statement  in  V  of  the  findings : 

If  the  revenue  derived  from  Ireland  were  in  proportion  to  this  relative  capac- 
ity, it  would  be  about  two  and  three-fourths  millions  (pounds)  a  year  less  than, 
in  consequence  of  the  existing  incidence  of  taxation,  it  at  present  is.  (Par.  291, 
Chiklers's  report.) 

Extract  from  report  by  Mr.  S  xton  arid  others  of  the  committee: 

The  revenue  actually  raised  in  Ireland  during  the  period  of  the  separate 
exchecquers  and  "contributed"  since  then  (according  to  Treasury  computa- 
tions) has  amounted  to  about  £570.000.000,  or  an  average  approximately  of 
£0,000.000  a  year,  being  double  the  amount  stated  as  the  fair  proportion  of 
Ireland  in  view  of  her  relative  capacity. 

These  statements  with  regard  to  the  overtaxation  of  Ireland  were 
repeated  in  the  separate  report  of  the  Hon.  Edward  Blake.  M.  P., 
the  only  native  of  North  America  who  was  a  member  of  the  com- 
mission. He  further  comments  regarding  the  commission's  estimate 
of  Ireland's  relative  taxable  capacity  (one-twentieth)  "  *  *  *  her 
relative  capacity,  which,  as  already  indicated,  we  all  agree  is  full, 
and  which  some  of  us  think  much  too  high." 

And,  I  may  add,  it  was  further  borne  out  at  this  commission  by 
the  testimony  of  Mr.  Lough,  M.  P..  that  this  overtaxation  in  Ire- 
land was  peculiarly  onerous  because  it  was  mainly^  extracted  from 
the  poor  wage-earning  and  agricultural  classes  rather  than  from 
the  profits  of  industries  as  it  had  been  in  the  prosperous  period  of 
Ireland's  own  Parliament  under  Grattan  and  Flood. 

Mr.  Lough  also  proved  by  official  figures  that  "  whereas  in  Great 
Britain  in  the  (past)  30  years  pauperism  has  halved;  in  Ireland 
in  the  30  years  it  has  doubled."  It  was  also  brought  out  at  the 
commission  that  Charles  Booth,  the  noted  English  publicist  and 
statistician,  decided  after  a  complete  survey  of  Irish  returns  up  to 


40 


THE  IBISH  QUESTION. 


ISS.")  that  "  an  absolute  industrial  decadence"  had  settled  upon  that 
unhappy  land. 

Mr.  Dolan.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  would  also  like  to  speak  on  this 
question,  because  I  have  made  a  study  of  Irish  estimates.  The  rev- 
enue collected  by  England  from  Ireland  in  1912  was  $60,000,000. 
Ordinarily  there  was  a  margin  of  about  $10,000,000  that  went  an- 
nually into  the  British  treasury  which  was  used  for  imperial  pur- 
poses, and  that  $10,000;000  extra  is  in  addition  to  about  $15,000,000 
which  the  Childers  Commission  found  that  Ireland  was  overtaxed 
annually.  Since  the  Avar  fhe  Irish  revenue  has  been  increased  enor- 
mously because  of  additional  taxes,  so  that  this  year  the  taxes  raised 
in  Ireland  amount  to  $140,000,000,  and  of  that  sum  about  $60,000,000 
has  been  expended  by  England  in  governing  Ireland  and  the  balance 
has  gone  for  imperial  purposes.  The  Irish  people  hold  that  they 
could  govern  themselves  on  the  present  basis  with  an  expenditure  of 
$40,000,000  annually. 

Mr.  Porter.  That  $60,000,000  does  not  include  Ireland's  propor- 
tionate share  for  the  maintenance  of  the  British  army  and  navy? 

Mr.  Dolan.  No;  that  is  according  to  the  figures  published  by  the 
British  treasury  officials. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  What  do  you  mean  when  you  say  that  the  Irish 
revenue  has  been  largely  increased  ? 

Mr.  Dolan.  I  mean  the  revenue  collected  by  England  from  Ire- 
land in  the  shape  of  taxes. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  THOMAS  ROCK,  OF  NEW  YORK,  N.  Y.,  REPRE- 
SENTING THE  CENTRAL  FEDERATED  UNION  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Rock.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  represent  the  Central  Federated 
Union  of  New  York,  comprising  a  membership  of  300.000.  With 
your  kind  permission,  I  will  read  a  resolution  passed  by  that  or- 
ganization on  November  22,  1918.  This  resolution  was  passed  by 
that  body  representing  300,000  working  people,  of  all  races,  of  our 
cosmopolitan  city.  It  will  show  you  how  the  working  people  of  the 
city  of  New  York  feel  about  the  question  of  self-determination  for 
Ireland. 

The  resolution  is  as  follows: 

We,  the  Central  Federated  Union  of  New  York,  the  accredited  representatives 
of  the  largest  aggregation  of  organized  labor  in  the  United  States,  in  regular 
meeting  assembled,  on  November  22.  1918,  hereby  resolve: 

1.  That  we  appeal  to  President  Wilson,  on  the  eve  of  his  departure  for 
Fiance  to  take  part  in  the  forthcoming  Feace  Conference,  to  bring  before  that 
body  the  claim  of  Ireland  to  national  independence  and  'to  demand  for  her 
people  the  right  of  self-determination,  to  which  he  has  repeatedly  declared 
thai  all  peoples  are  entitled,  and  to  secure  which  for  the  downtrodden  popula- 
tions of  the  Old  World  he  has  proclaimed  to  be  one  of  America's  objects  in  the 
war.  On  the  strength  of  this  declaration  the  American  people  sent  their  sons 
into  the  Army  and  Navy  and  poured  out  their  blood  and  treasure  lavishly; 
and  Irish  citizens  performed  their  full  share  in  the  fighting  and  the  other 
sacrifices. 

2.  Belgium,  Serbia,  and  Roumania,  whose  territory  was  overrun  and  occu- 
pied by  the  forces  of  the  central  powers,  have  been  cleared  of  the  invader:  the 
Poles,  Czechoslovaks,  Jugo-Slavs,  and  Lithuanians  have  been  liberated  by  the 
victory  of  the  United  States  and  the  allies  over  Germany  and  Austria,  and  the 
Ukranians  by  the  collapse  of  the  Russian  Czardom ;  Palestine,  Syria,  Armenia, 
and  Arabia  have  been  made  free  by  England's  victory  over  Turkey,  and  other  long 
submerged  peoples  see  the  dawn  of  their  freedom  and  a  result  of  the  breaking  up 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


47 


of  empires  founded  on  conquest  and  spoliation.  Ireland  has  tlie  same  right  to 
freedom  as  all  these  other  countries  and  her  people  the  same  right  to  determine 
their  own  form  of  government.  They  have  fought  and  struggled  for  it  for  many 
centuries  and  are  now  more  united  in  the  determination  to  secure  it  than  at  any 
time  in  the  past  700  years. 

3.  By  all  the  tests  recognized  hy  the  governments  and  peoples  which  have 
overthrown  the  German  autocracy  and  which  will  be  represented  at  the  Peace 
Conference,  Ireland  has  all  the  elements_of  nationhood.  She  has  a  homogeneous 
population,  with  capacity  for  government  long  recognized  in  the  United  States 
and  the  British  colonies  and  amply  demonstrated  by  the  Irish  Parliament  during 
the  short  period  of  its  independence,  from  1782  to  1800.  She  has  a  separate 
and  strongly  marked  geographical  position,  the  finest  harbors  in  Europe,  and 
unrivaled  water  power;  great  natural  resources,  now  undeveloped  because  of 
the  greed  of  the  capitalist  classes  who  control  the  Government  of  England  and 
who  by  prohibiting  legislation,  destroyed  her  once  flourishing  industries  and 
crippled  her  economic  life.  This  treatment  has  reduced  the  population  of 
Ireland  from  8,500,000  in  1846  to  4,300,000  in  1918,  a  fact  which  clearly  demon- 
strates the  necessity  of  a  complete  change  of  government. 

4.  But  Ireland's  chief  claim  to  rule  her  own  destinies  rests  on  the  natural 
rights  of  man  and  the  wish  of  her  people,  expressed  by  every  available  means  in 
the  most  unmistakable  manner  in  every  generation  for  several  centuries. 
England's  failure  to  govern  Ireland  well  has  been  demonstrated  with  equal 
clearness  and  force  during  the  same  period.  She  holds  Ireland  down  to-day  by 
military  force  alone,  by  a  reign  of  tyranny  paralleled  only  in  the  Russia  of 
the  Czars.  It  violates  every  right  of  citizenship  and  fills  the  prisons  with  hun- 
dreds of  men  and  women  whom  the  government  refuses  to  bring  to  trial  for  the 
self-evident  reason  that  it  has  no  evidence  to  prove  the  charges  against  them 
with  which  it  has  flooded  the  press  of  the  civilized  world. 

5.  Aside  from  the  moral  obligation  of  applying  to  Ireland  the  right  of  self- 
determination  to  which  our  worthy  President  has  declared  that  all  peoples  are 
entitled,  there  is  an  unanswerable  material  reason.  It  was  the  contribution  of 
the  United  States  in  men,  munitions,  ships,  food,  and  money  which  was  the 
decisive  factor  in  the  final  defeat  of  Germany.  The  freedom  of  Ireland,  which 
would  remove  one  of  the  incentives  to  future  wars  and  help  to  insure  the  world's 
peace,  would  therefore  be  a  small  favor  to  ask  of  England,  while  France  and 
Italy,  who  are  under  such  tremendous  obligations  to  this  Republic,  should  be 
ready  to  join  America  in  effecting  an  amicable  and  satisfactory  settlement  of  a 
question  that  has  troubled  the  world  so  long  and  will  continue  to  disturb  it  if  it 
is  not  now  settled  right. 

G.  We  have  the  strongest  sympathy  with  the  people  of  England,  whose  work- 
ers are  now  determined  to  secure  their  own  rights  and  to  win  their  proper  share 
in  the  government  of  the  country ;  and  we  are  fully  convinced  that  the  settle- 
ment of  the  Irish  question  in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  the  majority  of  the 
Irish  people  would  be  a  lasting  benefit  to  the  English  people  as  well  as  to  the 
Irish.  We  are  satisfied  also  that  if  President  Wilson,  at  the  peace  conference, 
presses  the  demand  which  we  respectfully  recommend,  he.  will  receive  the  sup- 
port of  our  fellow  workers  in  Great  Britain,  who  have  no  interest  in  keeping 
Ireland  down. 

These  resolutions  which  I  have  just  read  were  passed  unanimously 
by  a  rising  vote  amid  great  applause  of  the  delegates. 

The  Central  Labor  Union  of  Philadelphia  also  passed  a  similar 
resolution,  and  the  trades-unions  of  Ireland — there  has  been  some  men- 
tion made  of  the  religious  question — the  Trade-Union  Congress  of 
Ireland  has  made  a  demand  for  self-determination  and  freedom  for 
Ireland,  and  a  great  majority  of  the  members  of  the  Trade-Union 
Congress  of  Ireland  are  Catholics,  while  the  president  of  the  organi- 
zation is  a  Protestant  by  the  name  of  Johnson. 

Several  of  the  speakers  have  touched  on  the  economic  question.  I 
want  to  mention  something  that  happened  about  five  years  ago. 

The  White  Star  Line  and  the  Cunard  Line,  having  by  order  of  the 
British  Government  abandoned  Queenstown  as  a  port  of  call,  the 
Hamburg- American  Line  advertised  bookings  for  Queenstown.  and 


48 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


the  German  Government  was  notified  by  England  that  if  any  of  the 
German  lines  of  steamers  made  Queenstown  a  port  of  call  that  would 
be  looked  upon  as  an  unfriendly  act,  and  the  German  Government 
immediately  notified  the  Hamburg-American  line  to  cancel  all  their 
bookings  for  Qneenstown.  At  this  same  period  the  Hamburg- Ameri- 
can Line  was  calling  regularly  at  the  English  ports  of  Southampton 
and  Plymouth. 

On  behalf  of  the  labor  unions  of  New  York  I  appeal  to  this  com- 
mittee to  report  favorably  the  Gallagher  resolution,  which  has  been 
spoken  on  here  to-day  and  this  evening. 

Organized  labor  is  a  unit  in  favor  of  self-determination  and 
freedom  for  Ireland. 

I  asswme  there  are  Republicans  on  this  committee.  I  am  one  my- 
self. I  saw  in  one  of  the  papers  where  some  of  our  organizations 
are  passing  resolutions  in  favor  of  self-determination  for  Ireland, 
and  the  governor  of  the  State  of  New  York,  Gov.  Whitman,  was  one 
of  the  principal  speakers  at  the  Madison  Square  meeting  last  Tues- 
day night. 

This  is  not  a  one-sided  affair,  Mr.  Chairman.  The  entire  citizen- 
ship is  in  favor  of  self-determination  for  Ireland. 

Mr.  Rogers.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  desire  to  present  to  the  committee 
for  insertion  into  the  record  a  copy  of  resolutions  adopted  at  the 
mass  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Lowell,  Mass.,  December  8,  1918,  as 
follows: 

The  United  Irish  Societies  of  Lowell,  Mass.,  in  a  mass  meeting  assembled  for 
the  purpose  of  giving  expression  to  their  views  as  American  citizens  upon  the 
application  to  Ireland  of  the  principles  of  President  Wilson  for  the  "  Rights 
of  small  nations"  at  the  coming  Peace  Conference,  and  as  Ireland  is  one  of 
the  small  nations  and  has  struggled  for  her  independence  for  over  700  years 
and  never  admitted  the  right  of  any  country  to  rule  over  her — has  been  held 
under  an  alien  government  against  her  will — and  while  her  sons  have  in  the  war 
just  ended  shed  their  blood  for  the  freedom  of  small  nations  and  to  make  the 
world  safe  for  Democracy — fighting  under  different  flags,  and  under  none  more 
proudly  than  under  the  flag  of  our  beloved  United  States,  which  was  the 
deciding  factor  in  winning  and  ending  the  war:  Therefore  be  it 

Resolved,  That  we  as  American  citizens  and  lovers  of  liberty  for  all  the 
peoples  of  the  world  respectfully  ask  the  committee  on  Foreign  Relations  of 
Congress  to  act.  on  the  several  petitions  now  in  the  hands  of  the  committee  on 
Foreign  Relations,  asking  that  the  case  of  Ireland  be  presented  to  the  coming 
Peace  Conference,  and  that  Ireland's  case  be  given  the  same  place  at  that 
Conference  with  that  of  Poland,  Serbia,  and  the  other  small  nations  for  seff- 
determination  as  to  the  form  of  government  under  which  they  shall  live;  and 
that  they  shall  not  be  forced  to  live  under  a  Government  not  of  their  own 
choice:  And  be  it  further 

Resolved,  That  we  fully  indorse  the  principles  laid  down  by  President  Wilson 
for  the  self-determination  of  small  nations,  which  if  not  carried  out  the  war 
will  have  been  fought  in  vain  and  the  world  will  not  be  made  safe  for  democ- 
racy :  And  be  it  further 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  sent  to  the  Committee  on  For- 
eign Relations  of  Congress,  and  to  our  Congressman  from  tins  district,  and  to 
our  senior  Senator  from  Massachusetts. 

Michael  J.  Monahan. 
Michael  J.  Sharkey. 
James  O' Sullivan. 
John  Barrett. 
Francis  Kearse. 
John  J.  Kenney. 
John  McEnerney. 
Patrick  J.  Ma  honey. 
Philip  J.  Harlly. 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION". 


49 


The  Chairman.  How  many  more  speakers  have  you? 
Mr.  Gorman.  Four  more. 

The  Chairman.  It  is  getting  a  little  late  and  some  of  the  members 
of  the  committee  think  we  ought  to  adjourn  unless  we  can  finish  quite 
soon. 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  do  not  think  it  will  take  long  to  finish  these  four, 
but,  of  course,  if  we  are  to  hear  all  of  the  speakers  who  would  like 
to  be  heard  it  would  consume  two  hours  more. 

The  Chairman.  We  will  continue  a  little  longer  to-night.  You 
may  present  your  next  speaker. 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  will  call  Mr.  Coyne. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  THOMAS  COYNE,  REPRESENTING  THE 
TEAMSTERS  OF  ST.  LOUIS,  MO. 

The  Chairman.  You  may  proceed,  Mr.  Coyne. 

Mr.  Coyne.  I  represent  an  organization  of  teamsters  which  in- 
cludes in  its  membership  in  the  neighborhood  of  7,000  men  of  St. 
Louis. 

I  also  speak  as  a  member  of  the  Central  Trades  and  Labor  Union, 
which  union  has  not  been  able  to  hold  a  meeting  to  indorse  the  propo- 
sition that  is  confronting  us  to-day,  but  I  speak  on  behalf  of  them, 
that  we  are  for  the  freedom  of  Ireland.  We  are  for  the  freedom  of 
all  nations. 

If  we  are  going  to  have  peace,  let  us  have  a  real  peace.  When  wTe 
look  back  at  the  TOO  years  of  sorrow  and  strife  in  the  land  from  which 
many  Irishmen  and  Irish  women  came  to  these  shores,  and  from 
which  the  forefathers  of  others  born  here  came  to  this  land,  we  feel 
that  the  critical  moment  is  here. 

You  gentlemen  can  help  us. 

We  are  all  here  to  try  to  help  you. 

And.  for  God's  sake,  and  for  the  sake  of  labor,  which  is  fighting 
desperately  every  day  for  freedom,  we  ask  you  in  the  interest  of  all 
peoples  that  are  crying  for  freedom,  let  us  have  an  everlasting  peace. 
I  thank  you. 

Mr.  Gorman.  There  are  three  others  on  this  list,  besides  many 
others  who  would  like  to  be  heard.  There  are  some  Members  of  the 
Congress  who  would  like  to  be  heard  to-night,  and  in  order  to  give 
them  the  opportunity  perhaps  the  other  speakers  may  be  reserved 
until  morning. 

The  Chairman.  The  Members  of  Congress  could  be  heard  in  the 
future,  for  they  are  here  in  Washington,  and  it  wTould  not  incon- 
venience  them  to  be  heard  later,  I  take  it. 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  understand  that  some  of  them  would  prefer  to  be 
heard  to-night  on  account  of  other  engagements  wmich  might  prevent 
their  appearance  at  another  time. 

Mr.  Eagan.  I  have  got  to  be  at  a  meeting  of  the  Committee  on  Ap- 
propriations in  the  morning,  and  I  will  only  take  about  three  minutes 
-  if  I  can  get  the  opportunity  to  be  heard  to-night. 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  be  glad  to  hear  Mr.  Eagan. 
97017—19  4 


50 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JOHN  J.  EAGAN,  A  REPRESENTATIVE  IN 
THE  CONGRESS  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  FROM  THE  STATE  OF 
NEW  JERSEY. 

Mr.  Eagan.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
can  not  take  the  time  I  should  like  to  take  on  a  matter  of  such  great 
importance  as  this  resolution.  I  shall  take  occasion,  on  the  floor  of 
the  House,  to  go  into  the  matter  fully.  But  here  to-night  I  want  to 
summon  as  a  witness  in  answer  to  any  objection  that  may  be  raised 
as  to  the  indelicate  position  we  may  get  into,  internationally  or  diplo- 
matically, in  adopting  the  proposed  resolution, 'if  there  is  any  such 
danger — and  I  do  not  think  there  is — a  gentleman  whose  position 
on  the  subject  of  the  rights  of  small  nations  has  been  made  known 
to  the  world  in  a  way  that  has  never  been  equaled.  The  gentleman 
to  whom  I  refer  will  land  to-morrow  morning  at  Brest,  in  France, 
from  which  port  Count  Arthur  Dillon  and  2.300  Irish  soldiers  sailed 
for  America  prior  to  the  time  that  Lafayette  and  his  gallant  troops — 
many  of  whom,  by  the  way,  were  Irishmen — left  to  help  achieve  in- 
dependence for  the  American  Colonies.  I  am  going  to  summon  as 
my  witness  our  great  President,  Woodrow  Wilson.  [Applause.] 
In  his  speech  delivered  in  New  York,  on  September  27,  at  the  Metro- 
politan Opera  House,  in  opening  the  fourth  Liberty  loan  campaign, 
he  propounded  these  inquiries: 

Shall  the  military  power  of  any  nation  or  group  of  nations  be  suffered  to 
determine  the  fortunes  of  peoples  over  whom  they  have  no  right  to  rule  except 
the  right  of  force? 

Shall  strong  nations  be  free  to  wrong  weak  nations  and  make  them  subject 
to  their  purpose  and  interest? 

Shall  peoples  be  ruled  and  dominated,  even  in  their  own  internal  affairs,  by 
arbitrary  and  irresponsible  force  or  by  their  own  will  and  choice? 

Shall  there  be  a  common  standard  of  right  and  privilege  for  all  peoples  and 
nations  or  shall  the  strong  do  as  they  will  and  the  weak  suffer  without  redress? 

Shall  the  assertion  of  right  be  haphazard  and  by  casual  alliance,  or  shall 
there  be  a  common  concert  to  oblige  the  observance  of  common  rights? 

No  man,  no  group  of  men,  chose  these  to  be  the  issues  of  the  struggle.  They 
are  the  issues  of  it ;  and  they  must  be  settled — by  no  arrangement  or  com- 
promise or  adjustment  of  interests,  but  definitely  and  once  for  all  and  with  a 
full  and  unequivocal  acceptance  of  the  principle  that  the  interest  of  the  weakest 
is  as  sacred  as  the  interest  of  the  strongest. 

I  respectfully  submit,  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  com- 
mittee, that  it  is  the  profound  conviction  of  the  people  of  this  great 
Republic  that  the  nations  that  have  been  associated  with  us  in  the 
conduct  of  the  great  war  will  not  seek  to  impose  a  rule  of  conduct 
on  the  vanquished  central  powers  and  their  allies  that  they  will 
refuse  to  adhere  to  themselves.  The  subject  peoples  of  Germany,' 
Austria-Hungary,  and  Turkey  will  be  permitted — and  should  be  per- 
mitted— to  determine  for  themselves  the  precise  form  of  government 
under  which  they  shall  live.  The  Poles,  the  Czecho- Slovaks,  the 
Jugo-Slavs,  the  Armenians,  and  other  peoples,  long  held  in  subjec- 
tion, will,  and  should,  be  organized  along  governmental  lines  of  their 
own  choosing. 

The  Gallagher  resolution  simply  asks  that  the  peace  commis- 
sioners representing  the  United  States  of  America  at  the  Versailles 
Conference  be  requested  to  urge  upon  that  conference  the  right  of 
the  people  of  Ireland  to  determine  for  themselves  the  form  of  gov- 
ernment under  which  they  desire  to  live — in  a  word,  to  apply  to 
Ireland  the  principle  on  which  our  own  Republic  was  founded, 


THE;  IRISH  QUESTION. 


51 


namely,  that  "  all  governments  derive  their  just  powers  from  the 
consent  of  the  governed." 

Our  country  has  always  been  quick  to  express  its  sympathy  for 
peoples  struggling  for  freedom,  and  for  no  other  people  has  it  felt 
and  more  frequently  expressed  a  deeper  sympathy  than  for  the  people 
of  Ireland.  There"  has  never  been  a  time  when  our  sympathy  for 
struggling  nations  will  be  more  potent  than  it  will  be  at  the  forth- 
coming peace  conference. 

I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  the  Gallagher  resolution  or  any  other 
resolution  on  similar  lines  which  your  committee  may  see  fit  to 
report  to  the  House. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Mr.  Phelan  would  like  to  be  heard. 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  be  glad  to  hear  Mr.  Phelan. 

STATEMENT  BY  HON.  M.  F.  PHELAN,  A  REPRESENTATIVE  IN 
THE  CONGRESS  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  FROM  THE  STATE  OF 
MASSACHUSETTS. 

Mr.  Phelan.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  it 
was  my  intention  to  speak  to-morrow  rather  than  to-night,  but  the 
chairman  has  asked  a  question  and  nobody  has  answered  it,  I  shall 
not  attempt,  coming  unprepared,  to  answer  that  question  by  going 
fully  into  it;  in  fact.  I  should  not  attempt  to  answer  that  question 
in  three  or  four  minutes,  which  I  suppose  is  all  I  will  have,  but  I 
do  want  to  have  some  comment  made  upon  that  question  before  this 
meeting  closes  to-night,  and  that  is  my  reason  for  speaking  here  now. 

The  chairman  asks  if  there  is  any  precedent.  I  will  answer  that, 
in  what  is  perhaps  a  tj'pical  Irish  way,  by  saying.  No  precedent  is 
necessary. 

The  Chairman.  I  did  not  ask  if  there  was  any  precedent.  If  a 
proposition  is  right  and  its  propriety  clear  we  do  not  need"  a  precedent 
to  justify  action.  I  

Mr.  Phelan  (interposing).  I  am  not  including  your  whole  ques- 
tion, nor  using  your  exact  words,  which  I  could  not  remember.  But 
precedent  is  often  the  obstacle  to  progress.  If  we  depended  upon 
precedent  President  Wilson  would  not  land  in  Europe1  to-morrow 
and  be  at  the  Peace  Conference.  If  we  had  depended  upon  prece- 
dent the  United  States  would  not  be  represented  at  a  peace  table  to 
settle  affairs  in  Europe,  not  to  mention  the  bigger  world  affairs.  If 
we  had  depended  upon  precedent  the  United  States  would  not  be  a 
cobelligerent,  or  ally,  or  whatever  else  you  want  to  call  our  status, 
with  European  nations  in  the  world  war.  But  coming  down  to  prece- 
dent—and I  am  relying  now  upon  a  very  hazy  recollection,  but  I 
have  the  recollection  that  in  times  of  peace  the  Congress  has  unhesi- 
tatingly indicated  its  sympathy  with  small  nations  seeking  their 
independence,  notably  in  the  case  of  Greece.  I  might  also  make 
brief  reference  to  Cuba. 

A  Committeeman.  Did  not  Congress  also  pass  resolutions  relat- 
ing to  the  Jewish  condition  in  Russia? 

Mr.  Phelan.  Yes ;  we  did.  And  we  abrogated  our  treaty  with 
Russia  on  account  of  that  situation.  That  is  all  bearing  on  that 
same  point. 

But  to  get  down  to  the  meat  of  this  question;  here  is  the  ques- 
tion I  ask  every  member  of  this  committee  to  propound  to  himself 


52 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


before  he  reaches  a  final  conclusion  as  to  how  he  is  going  to  vote 
on  this  resolution  [H.  J.  Res.  357].  I  want  him  to  say  to  himself, 
Suppose  the  American  people  want  the  claims  of  Ireland  to  be  pre- 
sented at  the  Peace  Conference,  h6"W  are  they  to  be  presented?  Will 
you  answer  me  that  the  members  of  the  Peace  Conference  them- 
selves \\U]  voluntarily  take  up  this  question?  If  you  do,  I  will  -ay 
to  yen  in  reply,  with  all  the  respect  I  have  for  the  peace  conferees 
from  this  country,  that  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  elected 
by  the  votes  of  the  people  of  the  nation,  is  a  higher  and  better  au- 
thority to  speak  for  the  American  people  than  any  peace  conferees 
except  the  President  himself  sent  from  this  country  on  that  particu- 
lar question.  [Applause.]  At  least  Ave  have  an  equal  right,  and  it 
comes  well  within  our  province  to  express  our  opinion  if  we  see  fit 
to  do  it. 

I  want  this  committee  to  consider  another  thing  in  this  same  con- 
nection. I  want  them,  before  determining  how  they  are  going  to 
vote,  or,  I  ask  them  respectfully  before  they  determine  .how  to  vote, 
to  answer  another  question;  not  to  me  but  to  themselves:  Suppose 
Ireland  instead  of  being  located  out  in  the  seas  were  located  in  cen- 
tral Europe,  in  the  midst  of  Germany  or  Austria  or  Bulgaria  or 
Turkey.  Suppose  her  history  were  similar  to  what  it  is ;  that  condi- 
tions in  that  country  were  similar,  with  similar  people  occupying 
her  territory ;  similar  in  every  respect  and  in  every  condition,  includ- 
ing her  internal  conditions,  and  including  her  relations  with  the 
power  dominating  her,  is  there  any  member  of  this  committee,  is 
there  any  liberty-loving  American  in  this  whole  land  of  ours,  who 
would  hesitate  one  second  on  Ireland's  cause  and  say  other  than 
that  Ireland  ought  to  have  the  right  of  self-determination,  as  to 
Germany,  Austria,  Bulgaria  or  Turkey?  Is  there  one?  Remember 
that  when  we  say  Poland  ought  to  be  free  we  are  not  saying  it  with 
the  idea  of  vengence.  We  are  not  saying  it  with  the  idea  of  handi- 
capping or  punishing  any  one  of  the  central  powers.  We  say  Poland 
should  be  free  because  it  is  just  that  Poland  should  be  free.  We  are 
judging  that  case.  America  is  not  now  at  the  peace  table  to  punish 
even  our  enemies.  We  are  there  to  establish  justice  in  the  world. 
And,  as  I  say.  in  passing  upon  Poland  it  is  simply  and  absolutely 
a  question  of  justice. 

Why  should  Ireland's  cause  be  determined  on  any  different  basis? 
Assuminc;  the  justice  of  Ireland's  claims — and  there  has  been  abun- 
dant and  positive  evidence  introduced  on  it  to-night  without  me 
introducing  any  more — we  come  then  down  to  this  question:  Shall 
the  United  States  of  America,  or  shall  its  people,  or  shall  its  repre- 
sentatives in  the  Congress,  take  the  position  that  Ireland,  as  a  part 
of  a  country  in  central  Europe  having  a  just  claim,  should  have  us 
defend  that  claim,  but  that  Ireland  should  be  denied  the  right  of 
having  us  say  one  word  in  her  behalf  because  it  happens  that  she  is 
subordinate  to  and  dominated  by  one  of  our  cobelligerents? 

Do  you  want  testimony  on  that  position?  My  friends,  President 
Wilson  made  a  remarkable  statement,  considering  the  time  when  he 
made  it.  in  Xew  York  City,  in  a  speech  he  made  there  some  few 
weeks  ago.  in  which  he  said  something  like  this;  I  may  forget  the 
exact  words,  hut  he  said.  "  We  must  be  just  not  only  with  those  with 
whom  we  wish  to  be  just,  but  we  must  also  be  just  with  those  with 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


53 


whom  we  do  not  want  to  be  just.v  Borrowing  from  his  idea,  and 
adding,  perhaps,  what  would  be  a  corollary,  I  submit  to  the  mem- 
bers of  this  committee  that  in  passing  judgment  upon  this  cause  we 
must  pass  judgment  with  a  view  to  justice  not  only  to  the  small 
nations  and  the  small  peoples  who  are  asking  for  self-determination 
among  our  enemies,  but  also  we  must  treat  with  justice  those  small 
people  and  those  small  nations  who  are  seeking  self-determination 
among  our  friends. 

And  with  that  statement,  my  friends,  I  close.  [Applause.] 

Mr.  Gorman.  Congressman  Donovan  would  like  to  be  heard. 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  be  glad  to  hear  Mr.  Donovan. 

STATEMENT  BY  HON.  J.  F.  DONOVAN,  A  REPRESENTATIVE  IN  THE 
CONGRESS  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  NEW 
YORK. 

Mr.  Donovan.  After  the  very  able  summary  by  Mr.  Phelan  it  ill 
becomes  me  to  say  anything,  for  it  would  be  so  much  like  attempting 
to  paint  the  lily.  But  as  a  Xew  England  Yankee,  born  in  that 
State  whence  to-morrow.  I  understand,  will  come  somebody  in  oppo- 
sition to  your  adopting  this  resolution,  I  want  to  say,  as  a  son  born 
in  that  prejudiced  city  of  Xew  Haven,  where  up  until  the  adoption  of 
the  Federal  Constitution,  state  and  church  were  joined  together,  and 
where  no  one  could  hold  office  except  he  be  a  Congregational  min- 
ister, for  no  other  creed  was  recognized,  I  repeat  that  whomever  or  of 
whatever  type  may  be  he  who  is  coming  to-morrow,  I  want  you  to 
put  me  up  against  him  as  being  born  there,  and  to  say  that  my 
Americanism  is  above  his,  because  I  believe  in  worldwide  democracy. 

It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  dilate  on  the  reason  or  the  occasion 
why  this  resolution  should  be  adopted.  That  is  elementary,  gentle- 
men of  the  committee.  The  exposition  of  the  speakers  here,  if  there 
was  any  doubt,  has  convinced  you.  And  you  are  all  thinking  men. 
You  are  Americans,  and  you  are  in  the  great  acceptance  of  the 
term  Democrats — Democrats  for  the  entire  world,  and  at  this  time 
it  is  most  appropriate  that  this  matter  should  be  discussed  and  con- 
sidered. 

Xow,  the  question  before  you  for  consideration  is,  whether  or  not 
you  should  adopt  this  resolution,  and  whether  it  can  be  put  through 
on  its  passage,  and  what  is  the  purport  of  it  if  you  do  adopt  it.  I 
think  this,  my  friends,  that  you  are  goimr  to  stiffen  those  men  at  that 
Peace  Conference  and  at  the  peace  table.  They  are  the  same  as 
yourselves — Americans  to  the  core:  liberty  loving  men.  They  were 
taught  and  breathed  in  from  their  school  books,  as  I  certainly  did,  in 
Xew  England,  of  the  Boston  massacre,  and  of  the  Tories,  and  so 
forth.  You  all  know,  and  will  admit  with  a  certain  feeling,  that 
England  often  with  us  was  sharp  in  her  dealings.  But  we  set  that 
aside,  and  so  did  you  all,  for  the  war  in  the  interest  of  humanity. 
And  now  we  are  met  to  carry  out  the  principle  for  which  we  con- 
tended. And  here  is  this  isle,  the  home  of  my  forbears,  and  I  believe 
you,  as  American  men.  and  the  nation  in  general,  desire  that  those 
men  sitting  at  the  peace  table  across  the  seas  shall  be  advised  that 
the  American  Congress  suggests  and  demands  and  prays  and  hopes 
that  the  cards  will  be  laid  squarely  and  fairly  upon  the  table,  along 


54 


3  in:  IRISH  QUESTION". 


with  the  pack  from  the  other  places,  and  that  the  game  will  be 
played  fair,  and  that  Ireland  will  be  given  self-determination. 
T  thank  yon,  gentlemen  of  the  committee.  '  [Applause.] 
Mr.  D ALTON.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  desire  to  go  upon  record  as  sub- 
mitting arguments  to-morrow  morning  on  the  propriety  of  your  act- 
ing upon  this  resolution. 

A  Committeeman.  Please  advise  the  committee,  as  to  the  question 
of  propriety,  whether  you  are  going  to  speak  for  or  against  the 
resolution? 

Mr.  Dalton.  For  the  propriety  of  the  proposed  action. 
A  Committeeman .  You  are  in  favor  of  it? 
Mr.  Dalton.  Most  certainly. 

Mr.  Goodwin,  I  move  that  the  committee  do  now  rise. 

The  Chairman.  T  will  ask  Mr.  Gorman,  or  Mr.  Gallagher,  what 
arrangements  or, program  have  you  for  to-morrow? 

Mr.  Gorman.  There  are  other  gentlemen  who  want  to  be  heard. 

The  Chairman.  How  much  time  do  you  want? 

Mr.  Gorman.  If  we  may  be  permitted  it  will  take  several  hours, 
But  We  can  finish  in  two  hours.  We  will  try  to  complete  our  side 
to-morrow  morning,  when  others,  who  will  want  to  speak,  will  be 
here. 

The  Chairman.  Does  that  embrace  the  president  of  the  organi- 
zation? 

Mr.  Gorman.  All  who  want  to  be  henrd. 

A  Voice.  Members  of  Congress,  too.  If  there  are  Members  of  the 
Congress  who  want  to  be  heard  the  delegates  will  be  glad  to  give  way 
to  them. 

Mr.  Gorman.  We  can  complete  the  hearing  in  two  hours. 

Mr.  EagaN.  Could  we  be  advised  when  the  other  side  will  be  heard? 

The  Chairman.  That  side  has  not  been  presented  to  the  commit- 
tee  yet.  T  was  informed  by  Mr.  Tilson  to-day  that  there  was  a  gen- 
tleman from  his  State  who  wanted  to  heard,  or  who  wanted  to  ar- 
range for  a  hearing. 

Mr.  Gorman.  Will  there  be  an  opportunity  in  rebuttal? 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  hear  the  request. 

A  Committeeman.  Is  that  request  from  one  or  many? 

The  Chairman.  The  chair  is  not  advised. 

Mr.  Gallivan.  I  believe  those  here  will  welcome  anyone  who 
Avishes  to  speak  in  opposition. 

The  Chairman.  I  think  the  gentleman  has  a  right  to  be  heard,  if 
he  wants  to  be  heard,  and  in  a  very  respectful  way.  We  want  to  hear 
gentlemen  whether  for  or  against  the  resolution. 

Mr.  Gallivan.  That  is  just  what  we  have  been  contending  for. 
We  do  rot  want  the  opposition  under  cover,  we  want  it  right  out  in 
the  open. 

Mr.  Phelan.  May  I  submit  some  names  for  the  record? 
The  Chairman.  Certainly. 

Mr.  Phelan.  The  following  would  like  to  be  recorded  in  favor  of 
the  resolution:  John  T.  Hearne.  of  Westfleld.  Mass.:  John  Eeidy.  of 
Springfield.  Mass. ;  James  J.  Fitzgerald,  president  of  the  A.  O.  H. : 
Patrick  Haggerty,  of  Springfield.  Mass.:  James  J.  Morrissey;  Dr. 
John  F.  Kelly,  of  Pittsfield.  Mass.:  John  J.  Curley.  of  Boston; 
Richard  Dwyer.  State  president  of  the  A.  O.  H.,  Boston:  and  Hum- 
phrey O'Sullivan,  of  Lowell. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


55 


The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  now  rise  until  10  o'clock  to- 
morrow morning,  and  give  you  two  hours  further  for  the  hearing, 
as  we  must  adjourn  at  12  o'clock  to  go  to  the  House. 

(And,  at  10  o'clock  and  30  minutes  p.  m.,  the  committee  adjourned 
until  to-morrow  morning  at  10  o'clock.) 


Committee  ox  Foreign  Affairs, 

House  of  Representatives, 
Washington,  D.  6\,  Friday,  December  13, 1918. 
The  committee  met  at  10  o'clock  a.  m.  in  the  hearing  room  of  the 
Ways  and  Means  Committee.  House  of  Representatives  Office  Build- 
ing, Hon.  H.  D.  Flood  (the  chairman)  presiding. 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  come  to  order.  You  may 
proceed,  Mr.  Gorman. 

Mr.  Gorman.  I  desire  that  Mr.  Eichard  F.  Dalton  be  allowed  time 
this  morning  at  the  beginning  of  the  session.    After  that  Congress- 
man Gallagher  will  apportion  the  time  of  the  other  speakers. 
The  Chairman.  Mr.  Dalton,  we  will  hear  you  now. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  EICHARD  F.  DALTON,  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Dalton.  I  desire  to  express  myself  more  particularly  on  the 
question  raised  by  the  chairman  on  yesterday  as  to  the  propriety  of 
the  Congress  of  the  United  States  taking  action  at  the  present  time 
upon  such  a  joint  resolution  as  that  presented  by  Representative 
Gallagher. 

In  that  connection  I  desire  to  point  out  that  the  resolution  is  in  no 
way  directed  to  any  one  of  the  foreign  powers.  Xeither  is  that  reso- 
lution directed  to  the  peace  conference  as  such.  That  resolution  is 
directed  and  is  but  a  respectful  expression  of  opinion  to  the  plenipo- 
tentiaries of  the  United  States  representing  the  people  of  the  United 
States  at  the  peace  conference.  That  resolution  does  not  and  need 
hot  create  the  sentiment  which  has  been  so  freely  expressed  before 
this  committee  during  your  hearings  on  yesterday  as  seeking  to  de- 
termine the  political  future  of  Ireland.  It  does  not  seek  to  say  to 
the  people  of  Ireland  that  their  form  of  Government  should  be  this, 
that,  or  the  other.  It  does  not  seek  to  say  to  the  peace  conference 
that  the  peace  conferees  should  fix  the  form  of  government  for  the 
people  of  Ireland.  The  resolution,  as  I  understand  the  germane 
portion  of  it,  contains  the  idea  of  self-determination  for  the  people  of 
Ireland,  and  that  the  plenipotentiaries  of  the  United  States  to  the 
peace  conference  should  ask  for  the  people  of  Ireland  the  right  of 
self-determination  in  order  that  the  people  of  Ireland  may  themselves 
decide,  without  any  suggestion  whatsoever  from  us  as  the  United 
States  of  America,  or  from  other  nations  of  the  world,  upon  the  kind 
of  government  which  they  desire. 

The  Chairman.  Do  you  think  the  joint  resolution  (H.  J.  Res.  357) 
would  accomplish  the  same  purpose  if  we  were  to  strike  out  the  words 
"  freedom,  independence,  and  "  and  let  the  question  presented  to  the 
plenipotentiaries  at  the  international  peace  conference  be  the  right  to 
self-determination  ? 

Mr.  Dalton.  I  do. 

The  Chairman.  Do  you  think  that  would  weaken  the  resolution? 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Mr.  Dalton.  I  do  not  think  it  would  weaken  the  resolution  in  any 
son  so  whatsoever.  The  words  "  freedom  and  independence"  might 
possibly  be  held  to  predetermine  the  case,  and  I  feel  it  was  out  of  the 
greatness  and  bigness  of  Mr.  Gallagher's  heart  that  the  words  "  free- 
dom and  independence"  found  their  way  into  the  resolution.  What 
he  wants  and  what  we  want  is  merely  the  right  to  the  people  of  Ire- 
land to  express  themselves  by  way  of  self-determination. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  That  self-determination  is  in  fact  freedom  and 
independence. 

Mr.  Dalton.  Provided  the  people  of  Ireland  in  a  plebiscite  favor 
it.  I  want  to  say  that  this  is  the  only  opportunity  through  the  legis- 
lature of  the  Government  to  point  out  the  desires  of  the  people,  and 
that  after  all  the  Senate  has  the  ratification  of  treaties  within  its 
purview.  This  is  the  only  opportunity  for  the  great  liberty-loving 
American  people  to  say  to  their  delegates  at  the  peace  conference, 
It  is  our  wish,  it  is  our  desire,  that  the  people  of  Ireland  should 
be  accorded  the  right  of  self-determination.  And  I  submit  that 
the  resolution  as  drawn,  with  the  possible  amendment  that  is  sug- 
gested, would  simply  be  a  respectful  expression  of  the  opinion  of 
the  American  people  to  their  delegates  abroad  that  self-determi- 
nation should  be  applied  to  Ireland.  And  when  you  consider  that 
the  Irish  question  is  not  a  domestic  question  but  an  international 
question,  a  disturber  of  the  peace  of  the  world,  such  expression 
would  seem  to  be  necessary. 

Ireland  has  been  invaded  several  times  during  the  last  three  cen- 
turies at  the  request  of  the  Irish  people  for  aid  in  the  overthrow  of 
English  rule,  and  the  same  thing  will  undoubtedly  occur  again  if 
English  rule  be  allowed  to  remain  either  in  its  present  or  in  any 
other  form. 

Spain  sent  an  army  to  Ireland  in  1603  to  aid  in  an  Irish  insur- 
rection. 

In  1689  France,  under  Louis  XIV,  sent  an  army  to  Ireland,  and 
it  fought,  in  conjunction  with  an  Irish  army,  until  the  fall  of  Lim- 
erick in  1691. 

From  1796  to  1798  the  French  Eepublic  made  three  separate  at- 
tempts to  invade  Ireland  at  the  solicitation  of  Theobald  Wolfe  Tone, 
the  envoy  of  the  United  Irishmen. 

Napoleon  had  a  large  army  mobilized  at  Boulogne  and  ready  to 
invade  England  and  Ireland,  but  changed  his  mind. 

In  1866  and  in  1870  the  Fenians  invaded  Canada  and  had  the 
sympathy  of  many  American  public  men  and  offers  of  service  from 
several  American  generals,  both  Union  and  Confederate. 

It  will  doubtless  surprise  you  to  hear  that  Gen.  Phil.  Sheridan, 
one  of  the  four  great  soldiers  of  the  Civil  War,  was  ready  to  stake 
his  military  reputation  by  taking  command  of  the  Fenians  if  they 
could  supply  him  with  30,000  men  fully  armed  and  equipped.  They 
could  readily  supply  him  with  30,000  veterans  of  the  Civil  War, 
but  the  arms,  equipment,  and  money  for  transportation  were  beyond 
their  powers. 

And  I  submit  to  you  that  as  history  teaches  in  the  past  it  is  only 
fair  to  look  to  the  future,  and  only  fair  to  assume  that  the  people 
of  Ireland  will  be  looking  to  armed  intervention,  and  the  peace  of 
the  world  must  be  disturbed  unless  the  people  of  Ireland  have  self- 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


57 


determination.  So  I  say.  not  only  in  justice  to  the  people  of  Ireland 
but  to  the  people  of  the  United  States,  and  in  justice  to  the  people 
of  England  themselves,  we  who  have  our  faces  far  away  from  the 
struggle,  so  far  away  that  we  can  see  the  situation  fairly,  we  should 
say  in  the  name  of  the  great  liberty-loving  American  people  to  our 
plenipotentiaries  that  the  time  has  come  to  settle  that  question  which 
for  centuries  has  disturbed  the  world :  that  the  time  has  come  to  give 
the  people  of  Ireland  the  right  of  self-determination.  [Applause.] 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Mr.  Chairman.  I  understand  that  there  is  some 
gentleman  present  who  wants  to  speak  in  opposition  to  the  joint 
resolution.   If  he  is  here,  I  suggest  that  he  be  now  heard. 

The  Chairman.  Mr.  Fox.  how  much  time  will  it  take  for  you  to 
present  your  side  of  the  case  3 

Mr.  Fox.  I  could  take  two  hours.  I  want  to  bitterly  oppose  the 
adoption  of  the  resolution  as  a  miserable  insult  to  the  people  of  the 
United  States  and  of  England. 

The  Chairman.  The  gentleman  should  be  a  little  more  conserva- 
tive in  his  language. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Xot  knowing  that  the  gentleman  would  come  here, 
the  time  has  been  allotted  in  a  measure,  but  I  suggest  that  the  com- 
mittee allow  the  gentleman  10  or  15  minutes  to  be  heard. 

The  Chairman.  Fifteen  minutes.  I  should  say. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  We  can  not  shut  off  other  speakers  who  have 
come  here,  but  I  suggest  that  the  committee  give  the  gentleman  15 
minutt  s. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  We  will  determine  that. 

Mr.  Fox.  Should  not  the  opponents  of  the  resolution  have  as  much 
time  as  the  advocates  of  the  resolution  ? 

The  Chairman.  The  situation  is  this:  These  gentlemen  who  favor 
the  resolution  asked  to  be  heard.  The  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs 
met  and  determined  to  give  them  a  hearing,  which  action  was  taken 
a  week  ago.  We  had  no  request  for  time  to  be  heard  in  opposition 
to  it  until  yesterday.  In  the  meantime  a  great  many  ladies  and  gen- 
tlemen have  come  here  from  all  parts  of  the  country  to  be  heard,  and 
the  time  has  been  apportioned.  We  have  had  two  hearings,  and 
consumed  about  five  hours.  We  are  now  having  another  hearing,  to 
consume  about  two  hours.  When  Mr.  Tilson  spoke  to  me  about  your 
request  I  told  him  I  would  consult  the  committee  and  see  if  we  could 
not  hear  you  this  morning.  This  morning  we  must  rise  at  12 
o'clock,  and  these  ladies  and  gentlemen  have  come  from  long  dis- 
tances  

Mr.  Fox  (interposing).  I  have  come  from  a  long  distance,  too. 

The  Chairman.  At  the  same  time  1  want  to  give  you  a  hearing, 
and  was  making  the  suggestion  to  the  committee  that  we  hear  you 
for  15  or  20  minutes  and  let  the  other  side  proceed  as  far  as  they 
could. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  The  gentleman  can  have  the  privilege  of  extend- 
ing his  remarks.   That  will  be  accorded  him,  I  take  it. 

The  Chairman.  That  will  be  for  the  committee  to  determine. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Well.  I  was  making  a  suggestion. 

The  Chairman.  If  that  is  agreeable  to  the  other  side  and  agreeable 
to  the  gentlemen  of  the  committee.  Mr.  Fox  may  proceed  now. 


58 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


STATEMENT  OF  MR.  GEORGE  L.  FOX,  OF  NEW  HAVEN,  CONN. 

Mr.  Fox.  I  am  going  to  take  what  I  can  get.  I  know  the  Irish 
question  from  A  to  Z.  I  could  talk  two  hours  on  an  analysis  of 
Cardinal  O'Cpnnell's  speech  

The  Chairman  (interposing).  We  have  not  got  two  hours  that  we 
can  give  you. 

Mr.  Fox.  I  came  as  soon  as  I  saw  a  piece  in  the  New  Haven  paper 
that  there  was  going  to  be  a  meeting  of  the  friends  of  Irish  freedom. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  This  is  a  hearing  by  the  Committee  on  Foreign 
A  flairs. 

The  Chairman.  It  is  not  the  fault  of  the  committee  that  you  did 
not  get  the  information  a  week  ago.  We  fixed  the  time  for  this  hear- 
ing a  week  ago,  and  it  was  published  in  the  papers  all  over  the  country. 

Mr.  Fox.  I  do  not  want  to  be  obdurate,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  both 
sides  should  have  the  same  time. 

The  Chairman.  If  you  bring  delegations  from  different  parts  of 
the  country  we  will  try  to  arrange  a  hearing  for  them.  This  morn- 
ing you  have  come,  and  we  will  give  you  15  minutes. 

Air.  Racsdale.  Don't  you  think  it  is  arrogating  a  good  deal  to  your- 
self when  you  want  to  take  all  the  time  on  the  side  of  the  opposition 
for  yourself? 

Mr.  Fox.  I  think  I  should  take  the  time  necessary  to  represent  the 
opposite  side;  and  there  are  many  people  in  my  situation  in  this 
country. 

Air.  Racsdale.  Whom  do  you  represent,  Mr.  Fox? 
Mr.  Fox.  I  represent  myself. 

Mr.  Cooper.  Mr.  Fox,  I  suggest  that  your  time  is  being  taken  up 
by  this  discussion  on  the  time  to  be  allowed  you.  I  move  that  the 
gentleman  from  Connecticut  be  given  20  minutes.  No  other  speaker 
has  had  more  than  10  minutes,  and  that  is  just  twice  the  time  allotted 
to  any  other  speaker. 

The  Chairman.  You  may  proceed.  Mr.  Fox,  and  you  may  have  20 
minutes. 

Air.  Fox.  For  30  years  I  have  been  a  student  of  the  Irish  ques- 
tion  

The  Chairman  (interposing).  What  is  your  business ? 
Air.' Fox.  A  teacher  in  the  university  school  of  Xew  Haven.  Conn., 
and  engaged  in  preparing  pupils  for  college  for  40  years. 
Mr.  Kennedy.  Teaching  what? 

Mr.  Fox.  All  subjects  that  are  included,  except  physics  and  chem- 
istry. I  was  invited  by  a  prominent  leader  of  Great  Britain,  now  a 
private  citizen,  to  take  part  in  the  campaign  of  1910,  and  suppose  I 
am  the  only  man  in  America  who  has  had  a  chance  to  speak  there 
40  times.  At  that  time  I  was  a  great  admirer  of  the  nationalist  side 
and  urged  heme  rule  for  all  Ireland  except  Ulster,  and  am  willing  to 
stand  on  that  now.  I  have  been  an  earnest  student  of  the  Irish  ques- 
tion for  30  years,  and  have  been  reading  Gaelic-American  papers  for 
•°>0  years,  and  I  think  I  have  the  best  library  on  the  subject  that  I 
know  of.  But  I  want  to  protest  in  the  strongest  way  against  the 
adoption  of  such  a  joint  resolution  as  this  coming  from  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States,  because  it  is  contrary  to  the  policv  of  the  United 
States,  and  because  many  of  the  men  who  urge  its  adoption  are  men 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


59 


who  have  no  right  to  claim  anything  because  they  were  not  heart  and 
soul  in  favor  of  the  allies.  They  wished,  many  of  them,  that  Ger- 
many should  win.  In  proof  of  that  I  am  going  to  read  a  resolution  of 
the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  adopted  in  Boston  on  July  21,  191G, 
which  shows  that  they  were  in  hearty  sympathy  with  the  Germans — 
our  enemies,  who  were  sinking  our  ships — and  expressed  their  cordial 
sympathy  with  the  Germans  and  the  hope  that  they  might  be  success- 
ful in  the  war,  which,  as  we  all  know,  was  being  waged  against  civiliza- 
tion and  against  humanity,  and  that  Germany  might  beat  England: 

[Resolutions  adopted  by  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  in  Boston,  July  21.  1010  ;  taken 
from  the  Boston  Herald  of  July  22,  191C] 

England's  achievements  against  Ireland  have  been  marked  by  crimes  against 
civilization  such  as  have  never  been  surpassed  even  by  England  in  the  long 
record  of  murder  that  stains  her  history. 

The  fraternal  understanding  which  unites  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians 
and  the  German-American  Alliance  receives  our  unqualified  indorsement.  This 
unity  of  effort  in  nil  matters  of  a  public  nature  intended  to  circumvent  the 
efforts  of  England  to  secure  an  Anglo-American  alliance  have  been  productive 
of  very  successful  results.  The  congratulations  of  those  of  us  who  live  under 
the  flag  of  the  United  States  are  extended  to  our  German-American  fellow 
citizens  upon  the  conquests  won  by  Germany  over  England  and  her  allies,  and 
we  assure  them  of  our  unshaken  confidence  that  the  German  Empire  will  crush 
England  and  aid  the  liberation  of  Ireland  and  be  a  real  defender  of  small 
nations. 

The  trouble  is  that  these  men  favored  Germany  in  the'  war,  and 
still  they  come  in  here  and  ask  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  to 
adopt  a  joint  resolution  that  they  have  no  right  to  ask  the  Congress 
to  adopt,  and  which  they  have  no  right  to  present.  If  German v  bad 
won,  they  would  have  had  to  go  before  some  other  peace  conference 
aligned  with  Germany,  but  when  the  empire  which  they  have  sup- 
ported was  beaten  they  switch  around  and  ask  the  United  States  to 
go  to  that  peace  conference  in  their  behalf.  I  say  they  are  not  in  a 
position  to  ask  such  a  thing. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  May  I  ask  one  question  there? 

Mr.  Fox.  As  many  as  you  please. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  That  is  very  kind  of  you.  Do  you  take  the  posi- 
tion that  American  citizens  have  no  right  to  petition  the  American 
Congress  to  pass  a  joint  resolution? 

Mr.  Fox.  I  take  the  position  which  former  Speaker  Cannon  took, 
that  it  is  entirely  a  matter  for  England  to  decide,  just  as  it  is  entirely 
a  matter  for  us  to  decide  whether  we  shall  give  Porto  Rico  or  the 
Philippines  representation  with  voting  power  in  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  or  alter  things  in  the  South.  That  is  quite  a  proper 
position. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  vYour  position,  as  stated  just  a  minute  ago.  is  that 
these  people,  because  they  wanted  Germany  to  win  in  the  world  war, 
have  no  right  to  petition  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  to  adopt 
this  resolution  ? 

Mr.  Fox.  I  say  when  they  showed  themselves  to  be  supporters  of 
Germany — not  only  our  own  enemy  but  the  enemy  of  our  cobellig- 
erent  England,  but  France.  Belgium,  and  the  civilized  world — they 
are  not  in  a  position  and  should  not  come  to  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  and  ask  favors. 


60 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Mr.  Porter.  What  about  the  rights  of  the  280,000  and  more  Irish- 
men who  Fought  all  through  this  world  war  under  the  English  flag 
and  helped  to  bring  about  peace? 

Mr.  Fox.  That  is  not  a  question  for  us  to  decide.  They  fought 
under  the  Hag  oh'  their  own  country  and  did  their  part  as  citizens  of 
i  hat  country,  just  as  the  Scot  and  the  Welshman  did.  But  so  far  as 
that  is  concerned,  they  formed  a  very  small  part  of  the  English 
Army. 

Mr.  Porter.  Don't  you  think  they  have  some  rights? 
Mi'.  Fox.  Undoubtedly.    But  how  do  you  know  that  they  want 
independence? 

Mr.  Cooper.  They  formed  a  very  large  part  of  the  male  popula- 
tion of  Ireland,  did  the}'  not? 

Mr.  Fox.  I  can  not  say  that  it  did,  taken  as  a  whole.  A  great 
portion  of  Roman  Catholic  Ireland  raised  a  million  dollars  to  stop 
conscription.  They  were  not  in  favor  of  it  and  sought  to  prevent  it 
by  force,  if  necessary,  in  direct  opposition  to  the  laws  of  their  coun- 
try, which  laws  the  other  portions  of  the  empire  respected. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  Do  you  think  that  a  resolution  passed  by  some 
organization  prior  to  the  war,  when  we  were  neutral,  expressing 
sympathy  for  Germany  should  bring  about  a  denial  of  the  rights  of 
Irish  men  and  Irish  women  

Mr.  Fox  (interposing).  Why,  certainly  not. 

Mr.  Ragsdale  (continuing).  Wait  a  minute — to  offset  the  claims  of 
these  Irishmen  who  fought  in  the  world  Avar? 

Mr.  Fox.  You  do  not  know  what  the  Irishmen  want  who  fought 
in  the  war.   These  men  here  did  not  fight ! 

A  Voice.  Did  you?  [Laughter.] 

The  Chairman.  What  is  the  date  of  that  resolution? 

Mr.  Fox.  July  21,  191G. 

The  Chairman.  Have  you  anything  that  you  can  read  adopted 
since  April,  1917? 

Mr.  Fox.  Oh,  no.  But  I  can  bring  to  you  lots  of  newspapers 
showing  

Mr.  Ragsdale  (interposing).  Can  you  say  how  many  Irishmen 
fought  in  this  war  against  

Mr.  Fox  (interposing).  No;  and  nobody  else  can  tell.  But  there 
were  not  anywhere  near  as  many  Irishmen  fighting  in  this  war  as 
Englishmen. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  You  did  not  hear  the  end  of  my  question  ? 
Mr.  Fox.  I  think  I  did. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  How  many  Irishmen  have  fought  in  this  war 
against  America  ? 

Mr.  Fox.  Well,  I  should  suppose  that  possibly  200  fought  in  the 
war  against  America;  that  is,  fought  in  the  German  ranks. 

Mr.  Sabath.  Where  do  you  get  your  figures  from  ? 

Mr.  Fox.  From  a  man  who  has  been  in  the  war.  He  said  lie  saw 
a  grave  of  an  Irishman  on  the  German  side  after  the  second  taking 
of  a  place  by  the  allies. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  Would  you  say  that  because  200  Irishmen  out  of 
the  whole  nation  fought  on  the  German  side  that  the  Irish  nation 
was  disloyal  ? 


[HE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


61 


Air  Fox.  I  would  not :  but  I  was  talking  about  the  position  of 
Irishmen  in  this  country,  and  what  they  are  now  asking  of  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  State.  Cardinal  O'Connell  did  his  best  to  keep 
us  from  going  into  this  war.  I  can  point  out  to  you  in  the  i  olumns 
of  the  Irish  World  many  articles  

A  Voice  (interposing).  So  did  Mr.  W  llson  try  to  keep  us  out  ot 

this  war !  .  ■     ,      .    v  , 

Air.  Ragsdale.  Conscription  was  objected  to  m  Australia. 

Mr  Fox  \ustralia  is  entirely  different  from  Ireland.  Australia 
never  had  one  cent  out  of  the  British  treasury.  Australia  is  a  -elt- 
governing  colonv.  In  1800  Ireland,  by  the  will  of  a  strong  Roman 
Catholic  "population,  joined  the  union  of  the  British  Empire,  and 
therefore  no  Irishman  has  a  right  to  go  out  of  that  union  any  more 
than  a  citizen  of  New  York  has  a  right  to  petition  that  the  State  ot 
Xew  York  should  secede  from  the  union  of  States. 

Air.  Ragsdale.  Have  Australians  been  disloyal  ? 

Air.  Fox.  Yes,  sir.  Archbishop  Alannix  is  a  most  disloyal  man. 

The  Chairman.  The  committee  will  be  in  order.  This  gentleman 
has  not  very  much  time,  and  I  suggest  that  we  let  him  proceed  with 
his  statement. 

Air.  Fox.  Sinn  Feinism  in  Ireland  is  simply  the  doctrine  that  we 
knocked  out  at  Appomattox  Courthouse,  and  which  Ireland  accepted. 
The  strongest  Roman  Catholic  portions  of  Ireland  in  1800.  through 
their  representatives,  voted  for  the  unicn.  It  is  entirely  false  to  say 
that  it  was  bought.  Anybody  who  would  consult  the  histories  will 
find  to  their  satisfaction 'to  the  contrary.  The  great  historian.  J.  K. 
Ingram,  will  tell  you  that.  Robert  Dunlap  will  tell  you  that.  In 
the  March,  1917.  Christian  Science  Alonitcr  you  will  find  a  very  re- 
markable interview  with  O'Grady.  who  always  lived  in  Ireland, 
where  he  makes  fun  of  Irish  independence.  Ireland  has  received 
half  a  million  dollars  out  of  the  British  treasury  with  which  to  pur- 
chase lands  to  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  peasants.  This  Irish  inde- 
pendence proposes  to  steal  S500.000.000  from  the  taxpayers  of  Eng- 
land. TTould  you  stand  for  that  in  Porto  Rico?  We  are  the  last  <^f 
persons  who  should  adopt  su  h  a  resolution  as  this.  England,  if 
impolite,  might  well  say  to  us:  Physician  turn  and  heal  thyself.  We 
have  imposed  conscription  upon  Porto  Ri-.  o  and  Hawaii,  and  yet  they 
have  net  a  single  vote  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  At  the 
same  time  Ireland  lias  had  two  and  one-half  times  her  rightful  vote 
in  the  British  Parliament.  Repeatedly  she  has  received  gifts  from 
the  British  Parliament  on  the  understanding  that  she  was  an  integral 
part  of  the  nation.  The  most  intelligent  part,  the  most  enterprising 
part  of  Ireland — namely.  Ulster — longs  passionately  to  remain  in  the 
union,  just  as  did  that  portion  of  old  Virginia  which  is  now  West 
Virginia. 

Now,  then,  the  British  Government  promises  in  due  time  a  settle- 
ment of  this  question,  and  I  am  glad  of  it.  Xot  because  I  shall  never 
revise  my  views  again  in  favor  of  nationalism  after  the  Irish  Rebel- 
lion, but  because  I  want  England,  as  I  want  all  other  nations,  to  set- 
tle their  internal  questions  to  the  satisfaction  of  their  people  as  far 
as  they  can  be  settled  with  justice  to  all.  I  was  a  great  admirer  of 
John  Redmond  and  of  the  great  Charles  Stewart  Parnell.  I  knew 
T.  P.  O'Connor;  met  him  in  this  country  and  promised  him  that  I 


62 


1  HE  HUSH  QUESTION. 


would  help  him,  but  I  can  not  do  that  now.  I  am  fighting  against  the 
principles  for  which  my  brother  fought  in  the  Civil  War,  and  here 
you  gentlemen  of  the  committee  are  asked  to  advocate  those  prin- 
ciples. 

Why,  the  situation  presented  here  is  just  like  the  English  might 
say,  physician  heal  thyself.  When  we  have  given  the  right  of  self- 
determination  to  Porto  Rico,  and  when  we  have  given  the  right  of 
self-determination  to  the  Philippines,  and  when  we  have  given  the 
righl  of  self-determination  to  Hawaii,  we  might  hold  ourselves  up 
and  say,  Now,  England !  But  we  have  never  given  them  the  chance 
that  Ireland  has  had,  not  in  the  slightest;  we  have  never  given  them 
the  chance  to  vote. 

Mr.  Porter.  I  would  like  to  ask  

Mr.  Fox  (interposing).  I  can  not  be  interrupted  because  I  only 
have  a  few  minutes  more,  as  the  Chairman  has  suggested. 

Mr.  Porter.  I  insist  on  an  answer,  because  I  do  not  think  you  have 
been  fair  to  this  country  in  the  references  just  made  to  the  Philip- 
pines, Hawaii,  and  Porto  Rico. 

Mr.  Fox.  All  right ;  go  ahead. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  We  have  only  had  the  Philippines  and  Porto  Rico 
for  about  20  years,  and  have  been  in  a  way  gradually  developing  them 
along  the  road  toward  independence. 

Mr.  F ox.  I  do  not  believe  it. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  You  do  not? 

Mr.  Fox.  No,  sir. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  You  think  that  we  will  hold  them  for  700  or  800 
years,  do  you? 

Mr.  Fox.  You  will  hold  them  for  800  years,  unquestionably,  in  my 
opinion,  especially  Porto  Rico.  What  about  our  Monroe  Doctrine? 
And  it  is  all  a  falsehood  to  say  that  Ireland  has  been  held  by  force. 
You  will  see  by  these  documents  I  can  give  to  you  that  the  occupation 
of  Ireland  by  England  was  favored  by  the  Popes. 

Mr.  Ragsdale.  If  Ireland  is  not  being  held  by  force  why  not  let  the 
people  there  determine  the  question? 

Mr.  Fox.  You  did  not  do  that  in  the  case  of  some  of  the  States  of  the 
Union.  What  did  you  say  to  them :  You  once  came  into  this  Union, 
and.  now  you  must  stay.  It  must  be  enough  to  make  Abraham  Lin- 
coln and  Daniel  Webster  turn  in  their  graves  could  they  know  of  this 
request  here  to-day. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Those  States  voluntarily  came  into  the  Union. 

Mr.  Fox.  So  did  Ireland  in  1800.  [Laughter.]  It  is  perfectly  true. 
These  men  back  behind  me  here  do  not  know  anything  about  it.  That 
is  a  perfectly  true  statement,  and  is  borne  out  by  history.  They  are 
simply  laughing  because  they  do  not  know.  Proof  of  it  may  be  found 
in  J.  K.  Ingram's  history  of  the  Union. 

Mr.  Kennedy.  Mr.  Gladstone  knew,  and  this  is  what  he  said:  "I 
know  of  no  blacker  or  fouler  transaction  in  the  history  of  man  than 
the  making  of  the  union  between  England  and  Ireland." 

Mr.  Fox.  Mr.  Gladstone  is  clearly  mistaken.  I  can  quote  you  just 
as  bad  things  against  Ireland  as  that.  I  know  the  whole  history  of 
Ireland,  and  if  I  only  had  the  time  I  could  quote  it  and  talk  to  you 
about  it  for  hours.  It  was  never  a  nation.  Before  the  English  occu- 
pation it  was  made  up  of  tribes,  who  cut  each  others  throats,  includ- 


THE  IKISH  QUESTION. 


63 


ing  their  chiefs.  There  has  never  been  a  nation  of  the  Irish  in  Ire- 
land any  more  than  there  has  been  a  nation  of  the  Irish  in  this  coun- 
try. There  were  large  number  of  them,  and  there  were  tribes,  but 
they  were  never  a  nation.  I  never  saw  a  case  so  full  of  misleading 
logic  as  the  Irish  cause.  They  talk  about  a  nation,  and  talk  about 
democracy,  but  they  do  not  know  what  these  words  really  mean.  It 
is  very  hard  to  get  the  people  over  in  this  country  to  know  the  truth 
about  Ireland.  It  certainly  is.  You  take  such  newspapers  as  the 
Gaelic  American  and  the  Irish  World  and  they  are  full  of  falsehoods 
all  the  time.  That  speech  of  Cardinal  O'Connell's  was  a  speech  that 
I  would  like  nothing  better  than  a  chance  to  analyze  here  before  this 
committee.  I  would  like  an  opportunit}7  to  stop  and  show  you  where 
he  varies  from  the  true  situation  all  the  way  through.  [Laughter.] 
The  Chairman.  I  must  ask  that  the  gentleman  be  given  a  chance 
to  finish  his  statement  without  interruption.  He  has  but  a  few 
minutes  left. 

Mr.  Fox.  I  want  to  take  up  one  point  more :  There  has  been  some 
claim  made  on  the  ground  of  gratitude  for  the  part  taken  by  the 
Irish  in  our  wars  made  by  those  who  are  advocating  this  resolution. 
There  comes  in  for  consideration  what  is  the  meaning  of  the  term. 
They  use  Irisli  in  three  or  four  different  senses.  Every  time  you  use 
the  word  "  Irish "  you  must  analyze  it.  It  may  mean  Roman 
Catholic  Irish,  or  just  Irish  like  Eoger  Casement,  or  the  Protestant 
members  of  the  Protestant  churches  of  Ireland.  The  Irish  who 
fought  for  us  were  a  very  small  portion  of  the  whole  country.  In 
the  statistics  published  by  the  Census  Bureau  in  1907  it  is  shown 
that  the  first  time  a  census  was  taken  there  were  only  0.105  of  the 
population  of  the  United  States  that  were  Irish,  and  the  most  of 
those  were  Presbyterian  Irish.  And  that  is  borne  out  by  Victor 
Dowling,  one  of  the  justices  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  New  York, 
in  one  of  the  last  numbers  of  the  Irish  World.  He  said  that  the 
Roman  Catholic  Irish  did  not  begin  to  come  here  until  1832.  It  is 
the  Roman  Catholic  Irish  portion  only  who  desire  independence. 
And  there  was  hardly  one-half  of  1  per  cent  of  Roman  Catholic  Irish 
in  the  Revolutionary  Army.  There  were  no  Roman  Catholic  Irish 
in  the  Constitutional  Convention  and  very  few  here  at  the  time  of 
the  Declaration  of  Independence.  If  it  had  not  been  for  the 
German  King  we  would  have  continued  as  a  colony,  like  Canada, 
for  Ave  had  not  many  friends,  but  the  stubborn  German  King  would 
not  give  in.  We  tried  for  one  whole  year  to  escape  independence,  as 
all  historians  will  tell  you,  when  the  olive  branch  was  extended  by 
George  III. 

When  the  first  bishop  was  applied  for  in  1775  there  were  only 
256  Roman  Catholics  in  the  United  States  of  all  the  largest  nations, 
including  Dutch,  French,  and  so  forth.  The  first  church  built  in 
Xew  York  was  St.  Peters,  I  think,  built  in  1785.  There  was  none  in 
Boston  until  shortly  after  that.  The  Irish  who  fought  in  the  Revo- 
lution constituted  not  more  than  5  per  cent,  many  of  whom  were 
Protestants  from  Ulster,  of  the  class  from  which  the  late  President 
McKinley  and  President  Wilson  descended.  There  is  not  the  slight- 
est basis  of  gratitude  for  what  they  did.  And  if  there  had  been, 
the  England  of  to-day  is  very  different  from  the  England  of  George 


04 


THE   IRTSJT  QUESTION. 


III.  It  is  moire  reputrficai)  than  we  arc  in  many  respects,  and  Ireland 
entered  the  union  willingly  in  1800. 

Now,  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  while  yon  will  find  the  state- 
ment made  all  the  time — yet  there  is  no  possible  basis  for  it,  it  being 
a  pure  assumption — that  the  Roman  Catholic  Irish  won  the  Revolu- 
tion. All  of  the  glory  that  belongs  to  the  Statue  of  Liberty  belongs 
to  the  English  race,  for  they  formed  87  per  cent  of  the  population, 
according  to  the  census  statistics  at  the  time  of  the  First  Census. 
And  it  was  made  clear  by  Senator  Lodge  15  years  ago  when  speak- 
ing on  the  English  Colonies  in  America.  But  the  statement  has 
constantly  been  made  until  Mr.  Victor  Dowling  was  fair  enough  to 
correct  it.  You  will  find  his  statement  in  a  number  of  the  Irish 
World  of  about  three  weeks  ago  on  the  early  Irish-Americans.  There 
is  no  basis  for  that  claim,  and  almost  all  of  the  books  published  on 
this  point  are  exceedingly  misleading — one  by  MacManus  and  one  by 
Leslie.  Leslie  makes  this  absurd  statement,  that  Robert  Treat  Paine 
was  a  descendant  of  O'Neil,  who  fought  Queen  Elizabeth.  All  he 
would  have  to  do  would  be  to  turn  to  the  books.  I  asked  a  descend- 
ant of  Robert  Treat  Paine  about  it,  and  he  said  there  was  nothing 
in  it;  that  their  ancestors  came  from  Kent,  in  England.  The  same 
is  true  of  the  value  of  the  Irish  in  the  Civil  War.  He  says  the  Sixty- 
ninth  threw  back  Pickett's  brigade  at  Gettysburg.  I  clo  not  think 
anybody  can  say  who  threw-  back  Pickett's  brigade  at  Gettysburg, 
though  the  Fourteenth  Connecticut  and  Cushing's  battery  had  as 
much  to  do  with  it  as  anybody.  It  is  said  the  First  Minnesota 
stopped  them  in  the  woods  after  the  first  day's  fighting. 

The  Chairman.  Mr.  Fox,  your  time  has  expired. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  The  next  speaker  

A  Voice  (interposing).  May  I  ask  the  speaker  if  he  is  an  American 
citizen?    f  Laughter.] 

Mr.  Fox.  My  ancestors  came  from  London  in  1639  and  settled  in 
New  England,  and  they  have  been  there  ever  since.  I  was  born  in 
NewT  Haven  65  years  ago.  I  could  qualify  for  admission  to  the  Sons 
of  the  American  Revplution  if  I  wanted  to,  which  very  few  Irish- 
Americans  can  do. 

The  Chairman.  Mr.  Fox,  j^our  time  has  expired. 

Mr.  Fox.  I  want  to  say  to  you  

The  Chairman  (rapping  for  order).  Mr.  Fox,  your  time  has  ex- 
pired, and  you  will  have  to  take  your  seat. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  The  next  speaker  will  be  Miss  Katherine  Hughes, 
representing  the  Irish  Women's  Council  of  America,  and  who  has 
been  allotted  15  minutes. 

The  Chairman.  Miss  Hughes  will  have  15  minutes. 

STATEMENT  OF  MISS  KATHERINE  HUGHES,  REPRESENTATIVE  OF 
IRISH  WOMEN'S  COUNCIL  OF  AMERICA. 

Miss  Hughes.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
represent  the  Irish  Women's  Council  of  America,  which  is  organized 
from  New  York  to  San  Francisco.  Like  the  parent  body  in  Ireland, 
its  membership  consists  of  Catholic  and  Protestant  women  of  Irish 
blood,  illustrating  the  salient  point  of  all  the  Irish  movements  of  this 
century — unity  of  Catholics  and  Protestants.    The  founders  of  our 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


65 


council  were  Mrs.  John  R.  Green,  the  noted  historian  and  Irish  Prot- 
estant patriot :  Mary  Spring-Rice,  niece  of  the  late  Sir  Cecil  Spring- 
Rice  :  the  granddaughters  of  Archbishop  Trench,  the  great  Anglican 
primate  of  Ireland:  and  the  daughters  of  Charles  Gavan  Duffy  and 
Barrv  O'Brien,  the  colleague  and  biographer  of  Charles  Stewart 
Parnell. 

Mr.  Cooper.  Did  you  say  Mrs.  Green  was  the  widow  of  the  great 
historian  ? 

Miss  Hughes.  Yes :  Mrs.  Green  is  the  widow  of  John  R.  Green,  the 
historian,  and  herself  one  of  the  greatest  living  historians. 

IRISH  IN  REVOLUTION  A  R  Y  WAR. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  unity  of  creeds  in  all  the  new  movements  in 
Ireland.  There  seems  to  be  less  harmony  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic 
when  a  statement  can  be  deliberately  made,  as  in  your  presence  this 
morning,  that  the  Irish  Catholics — which  always  means  Irish  of  the 
original  Gaelic  stock — played  no  part  of  any  worth  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War  of  1776. 

The  speaker  omits  the  fact  that  the  first  four  regiments  from  France 
were  made  up  of  Irish  Catholic  soldiers:  that  19  of  their  officers  were 
of  the  old  Irish  nobility:  that,  at  that  period  in  America,  under  Eng- 
land's rule,  there  was  no  religious  toleration  except  in  Catholic  Mary- 
land and  Quaker  Pennsylvania,  and  consequently  Irish  Catholics  out- 
side these  districts  had  little  formal  organization:  that  even  the 
sentence  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence  which  provided  religious 
freedom  throughout  this  Republic  was  framed  by  a  Maryland  Catho- 
lic— Archbishop  Carroll. 

Why  has  he  also  omitted  the  fact  that  in  the  Revolutionary  War 
there  were  50.000  i;  Loyalists  n  in  the  English  Army,  fighting  against 
America  ("Loyalists  in  the  American  Revolution."  p.  183).  and  these 
were  mainly  from  Xew  England ;  that,  as  Dr.  William  J.  A.  Maloney 
points  out  in  his  Ulster  Aspect  of  the  Irish  Issue."  Washington 
termed  these  American-born  antagonists  of  American  freedom  "  as 
'abominable  pests  of  society/  and  treated  them  as  traitors" 

I  wonder  if  the  last  speaker  [Mr.  Fox]  hoped  to  win  belief  for 
his  statement  that.  "  In  1800,  Ireland,  by  the  will  of  a  strong  Catholic 
population,  joined  the  union"  of  British  parliaments?  Does  he  not 
know  that  the  Irish  Catholics,  still  living  in  1800  under  the  shadow 
of  the  penal  laws,  were  practically  without  representation  in  the 
Irish  Parliament  of  that  period;  that  no  Irish  Catholic  or  Irish 
Presbyterian  could  be  a  member  of  that  parliament  ;  that,  of  its  300 
members,  only  28  members  were  elected;  that,  of  the  162  members 
who  voted  for  the  union.  "  116  were  placemen  (appointees  of  the 
English  Government  and  its  henchmen)  ;  some  of  whom  were  Eng- 
lish generals  on  the  staff  without  one  foot  of  ground  in  Ireland  and 
completely  dependent  upon  the  Government  *  *  as  Lord  Grey 
stated  in  his  reply  to  Pitt  protesting  against  the  corruption  and  dis- 
honorable means  by  which  this  L^nion  was  obtained. 

Does  not  this  Xew  Haven  protagonist  of  England  and  English 
policy  throughout  the  centuries  [Mr.  Fox]  realize  that  the  much- 
quoted  Catholic  archbishop  in  Ireland  who  endeavored  to  argue  in 
97017—19  5 


66 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


favor  of  this  union  was  persuaded  to  do  so  by  a  definite  pledge  from 
Pitt  that,  if  the  union  of  parliaments  were  effected,  the  English  Gov- 
ernment would  abolish  the  remaining  penal  laws  and  grant  to  the 
Irish  Catholics  a  complete  emancipation?  Needless  to  say,  that 
pledge  to  the  credulous  Irish  cleric  was  promptly  repudiated  after 
1800,  and  Archbishop  Troy,  in  his  chagrin  and  disillusionment,  found 
no  sympathy  among  his  own  people,  for  few  of  them  had  approved 
of  his  unpatriotic  and  ill-judged  course. 

But  these  old  fables  of  anti-Irish  propaganda  have  been  answered 
a  score  of  times  before.  Matters  of  to-day  clamor  for  our  under- 
standing. 

AMERICAN  INTERVENTION. 

Miss  Hughes.  I  ask  consideration  from  the  committee  upon  three 
points  with  regard  to  the  arguments  that  are  being  advanced  in 
America  as  to  why  America  should  not  intervene  at  the  Peace  Con- 
ference in  support  of  Irish  self-determination.  The  doubt  of  Amer- 
ica's right  to  do  this  is,  happily,  shared  by  only  a  few  and  is  not  in 
accord  with  American  traditions  of  human  liberty.  It  is  the  result 
of  the  most  intensive  and  extensive  propaganda  against  any  nation 
that  this  clean  New  World  has  ever  known.  But  it  has  not  affected 
the  views  of  the  most  thoughtful  Americans.  Last  February  your 
esteemed  colleague,  the  late  Senator  Stone  of  Missouri,  said  to  me, 
in  his  office  and  speaking  in  his  official  capacity: 

I  believe,  of  course,  that  Ireland  has  a  right  to  her  independence  as  a  distinct 
nation.  At  present,  and  while  the  war  continues,  of  course  nothing  can  be 
done  by  us  to  assist  her  cause.  But  when  the  war  is  over  our  Government 
should  take  action,  and  I  am  sure  it  will. 

At  the  same  time  he  spoke  of  Dr.  MacCartan,  the  envoy  of  the 
Irish  Provisional  Government,  with  as  much  seriousness  and  respect 
as  the  members  of  the  welcoming  Irish  Parliament  in  1771  spoke  of 
Benjamin  Franklin  when  he  went  among  them  as  a  similar  envoy  of 
the  American  rebels. 

RELIGIOUS  QUESTION  AND  ULSTER. 

The  first  argument  advanced  against  American  intervention  is 
that  religious  differences  in  Ireland  are  so  great  that  the  country 
could  not  possibly  govern  itself.  I  will  say  that  one  of  the  first  re- 
buttals of  this  is  the  flag  of  Ireland  to-day — the  Tricolor — the 
orange  and  green  with  the  white  of  peace  between.  [Miss  Hughes 
here  produced  the  flag  of  the  Irish  Republic]  The  only  flag  recog- 
nized by  our  Irish  Women's  Council  and  by  the  people  of  Ireland  as 
the  Irish  flag  to-day  is  this  flag  which  I  would  now  present  for  the 
record.  It  is  a  more  eloquent  testimony  of  Irish  unity  than  any 
words  can  be. 

The  Chairman.  I  do  not  know  whether  the  Public  Printer  can  re- 
produce it  in  the  printed  hearing,  but  it  will  be  furnished  him,  so 
that  he  may  do  so,  if  he  can. 

Miss  Hughes.  I  thank  you. 

It  is  not  a  new  flag;  it  is  over  125  years  old ;  Irishmen.  Catholic  and 
Protestant,  have  died  for  this  flag  in  five  armed  rebellions  in  the  last 
125  years.  In  its  beautiful  symbolism  it  was  designed  by  Wolfe  Tone, 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


67 


the  great  Protestant  leader  of  Ireland  in  1798.  who  paid  with  his 
life  for  his  patriotism. 

It  was  for  this  orange  and  green  with  the  white  of  peace  between 
that  the  men  of  Easter  week  died.   It  is  this  flag  alone  that  over  80 


per  cent  of  the  Irish  population  to-day.  Catholic  and  Protestant, 
recognizes,  and  I  am  glad  of  the  permission  so  kindly  granted  by  the 
chairman  to  place  this  flag  in  the  record. 

The  superhuman  struggle  made  by  Irishmen  of  all  creeds  in  those 
five  armed  rebellions  was  not  alone  for  the  three  inalienable  rights 
of  man — the  right  to  live,  the  right  to  hold  property,  the  right  to 
govern  themselves — but  for  the  further  right  to  dwell  amicably 
among  themselves,  countrymen  of  all  creeds,  without  interference  or 
political  intrigue  from  outside. 

There  is  no  record  in  history  of  religious  persecution  by  any  Irish 
government :  religious  intolerance  is  foreign  to  the  Gaelic  nature. 
In  the  seventeenth  century,  when  all  Europe  was  torn  with  religious 
wars.  Irish  Catholics,  in  framing  their  Rebel  government  at  Kil- 
kenny, specifically  stated  in  their  constitution  (statutes  of  Kilkenny, 
1G43)  that  all  creeds  were  to  have  perfect  religious  freedom  in 
Ireland. 

FACTS  ABOUT  UUSTER. 

The  plain  facts  of  the  Ulster  question  are  these:  The  people  of 
northeast  Ulster  were  first  settled  there  in  the  seventeenth  century 
upon  lands  forcibly  taken  from  the  Irish.  In  time  the  dispossessed 
learned  not  only  to  forgive  but  to  love  the  newcomers,  and  toward 
the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  Irish  Protestant  volunteers,  stand- 
ing like  brothers  beside  their  unarmed  Catholic  brethren,  demanded 
the  religious  emancipation  of  the  Catholics  at  their  historic  Dun- 
gannon  meeting.  The^e  volunteers,  under  the  statesmanlike  direction 
of  Henry  Grattan  and  Henry  Flood,  who  was  not  merely  the  name- 
sake but  the  historic  ancestor  of  your  chairman  here  to-day.  wrested 
from  England  not  alone  a  soveiegn  parliament  but  the  act  of  renun- 
ciation of  1783,  providing — 

*  *  *  that  the  rights  claimed  by  the  people  of  Ireland  to  be  bound  only  by 
laws  enacted  by  His  Majesty  and  the  Parliament  of  that  Kingdom  is  hereby 
declared  to  be  established  and  ascertained  forever,  and  shall  at  no  time  here- 
after be  questioned  or  questionable. 


68 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Then  the  nil i nir  powers  at  London  decided  that  the  house  of  Ire- 
land must  be  divided  against  itself,  otherwise  it  would  become  free 
and  Independent  of  the  usurping  English  rule. 

There  was  then  hatched  in  London  a  scheme  of  religious  antago- 
nism for  Ireland,  planned  in  the  same  way  as  the  "Ulster  rebellion," 
which  1  personally  saw  being  formulated  in  London  in  1913-14.  and 
which  was  afterwards  set  down  in  Ulster  and  proclaimed  to  the 
world  as  an  Irish  problem.  The  same  mediums  were  used  then  as 
now — the  powerful  landlord  and  employer  with  his  London  affilia- 
tions. In  this  way  a  religious  scarecrow  was  erected  in  the  fair 
fields  of  Eire. 

Unhappily,  this  foreign  importation,  sedulously  cultivated,  became 
an  accepted  reality  among  the  Irish  people.  But  the  Gaelic  nature 
soon  asserted  itself.  Men  like  Robert  Emmett.  John  Mitchell, 
Thomas  Davis,  and  Charles  Stewart  Parnell  on  the  one  side,  and 
Daniel  O'Connell,  Charles  Gavan  Duffy,  John  Redmond,  and  Arthur 
Griffith  on  the  other  side,  threw  bridges  across  the  gulf. 

IRELAND  AGAIN  UNITED. 

And  now  again,  when  the  people  of  Ireland  have  come  together 
with  little  of  that  alien  prejudice  lingering,  the  new  Ireland  is  too 
well  educated  and  too  sophisticated  ever  to  be  put  apart  again  to  its 
national  disadvantage. 

To-day  the  population  of  Ireland  is.  approximately,  three-fourths 
Catholic  and  one-fourth  Protestant.  The  actual  figures  are:  Catho- 
lic, 3.242,670;  Protestant,  1,147,549:  total.  4.390.219.  In  the  Province 
of  Ulster  there  are:  Protestants,  890.880:  Catholics.  690,816;  the 
Protestant  majority  being  200,064  for  all  Ulster. 

In  the  six  counties  which  were  seized  from  the  O'Neills  and  the 
O'Donnells  and  the  O'Cahahs  in  1621  the  population  now  is:  Prot- 
estats.  820,367:  Catholics,  430.164:  Protestant  majority,  390.203. 

PROPOSED  PARTITION  OF  IRELAND. 

It  is  for  this  majority  of  390.203  of  all  Protestants  in  these  six 
counties — many  of  whom  are  not  only  nationalists  but  Sinn  Fein — 
that  Premier  Lloyd-George  has  implied  the  3,242.670  Irish  Catholics 
must  still  be  coerced  by  an  alien  government.  The  only  alternative 
offered  by  the  English  Government  to  this  alien  rule  is  the  partition 
of  Ireland  by  cutting  out  the  six  counties  and  their  Protestant  major- 
ity from  the  rest  of  Ireland.  These  counties  contain  one  of  the  seats 
of  the  ancient  high  kings  of  Ireland,  who  held  parliament  and  courts 
there  in  the  days  before  and  after  Christ.  They  also  contain  the 
burying  place  of  St.  Patrick.  Yet  English  statesmen  propose  to 
divide  this  ancient  State  as  casually  as  though  it  were  a  new  and 
empty  township  in  Wyoming. 

No  one  can  seriously  make  this  proposition  but  one  whose  national 
vision  is  distorted  by  the  use  of  an  imperial  monocle.  Both  Sir 
Horace  Plunkett  and  the  present  Anglican  primate  of  the  Church  of 
England  in  Ireland  have  stated  that  such  a  partition  would  be  dis- 
pleasing to  all  Ireland.  The  people  of  Ireland  as  a  whole  are  as  little 
likely  to  accept  this  proposition  as  the  English  people  would  the  idea 
of  carving  out  Lancashire  from  England,  because  the  population  of 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION. 


69 


that  county  is  largely  permeated  with  Scotch,  Welsh,  and  Irish  blood, 
and  because  traditionally  the  attitude  of  the  Lancashire  people  is 
critical  and  rather  unfriendly  to  the  people  of  the  south  of  England- 

Ireland's  attitude  in  the  great  war. 

The  second  argument  advanced  against  America's  interference  is 
that  Ireland  did  not  take  her  full  share  in  this  recent  war  for  human 
liberty.  As  has  already  been  stated  here,  at  the  beginning  of  the  war 
the  volunteering  in  Ireland  was  as  prompt  and  as  generous  as  in  any 
other  part  of  the  world,  because  Belgium  and  France  are  traditionally 
friends  of  Ireland. 

When  Asquith  went  to  Dublin  on  a  recruiting  tour  in  1014  the  stage 
on  which  he  spoke  had  for  decorations  the  ancient  royal  flag  of  Ire- 
land, the  blue  and  gold:  the  appeals  to  the  people  were  printed  in 
Gaelic,  and  Asquith  told  the  young  men  of  Ireland  that  England's 
sword  would  never  be  sheathed  until  she  had  secured  the  rights  of  the 
small  nations  of  Europe.  But  that  very  same  autumn  his  party 
withheld  giving  the  long-promised  home  rule  to  Ireland  and  buried 
it  on  the  statute  books.  This  was  done,  notwithstanding  a  personal 
pledge  that  had  been  given  to  John  Redmond,  and  on  the  faith  of 
which  Redmond's  Irish  party  had  for  years  loyally  supported  As- 
quith's  party,  aiding  them  to  pass  through  the  English  Parliament 
legislation  which  could  not  have  been  passed  without  their  aid — 
much-needed  measures  of  reform  for  the  poor  and  working  classes- 
of  England. 

IRELAND  GAVE  6 J  PER  CENT  OF  POPULATION. 

Notwithstanding  this  treatment  C4  per  cent  of  Ireland's  total  popu- 
lation enlisted  under  the  British  flag  to  fight  for  the  rights  of  small 
nations.  The  actual  figures,  verified  in  most  part  by  me  at  the  Con- 
gressional Library  on  yesterday,  are  these : 

According  to  Lord  TTimborne's  report  to  Lord  Kitchener  of  Janu- 
ary II,  1916.  there  were  51.016  Irishmen  serving  as  regulars  and 
reservists  in  the  British  Army  in  August.  1011.  According  to  Sir 
Eric  Geddes.  in  the  House  of  Commons,  there  were  up  to  1918. 170.000 
enlistments  in  Ireland.  According  to  the  statement  of  Mr.  T.  P. 
O'Connor,  M.  P..  after  a  statistical  survey  of  conditions,  there  were 
over  35.000  Irish  boys  temporarily  employed  away  from  home  who 
enlisted  in  English  and  Scotch  regiments  in  1914-15.  According  to 
Lord  Wimborne's  report  there  were  8.516  Irishmen  in  the  English 
Navy.  In  1918  there  were  over  7.000  enlistments  in  Ireland,  and  ac- 
cording to  a  most  conservative  estimate  of  the  naval  reservists  and 
naval  enlistments  later  the  number  is  put  at  4.000.  making  a  total  of 
275,592  Irishmen  fighting  in  the  English  Army  and  Navy  during 
this  Avar. 

But  the  propaganda  against  Ireland  in  this  country  ignores  the 
fact  that  Ireland  was  fighting  for  liberty  on  two  fronts — at  home  and 
abroad.  Whilst  the  young  men  were  so  generously  volunteering  in 
1914  the  Sinn  Fein  party,  which  up  to  that  time  had  been  regarded  as 
a  group  of  political  theorizers.  became  profoundly  constructive  and 
active  in  their  propaganda. 


70 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Like  a  skilled  surgeon's  probe,  the  forces  of  this  party  were  now 
directed  to  a  menace  that  threatened  the  body  of  the  nation  with 
death,  Irishmen,  whose  natural  valor  and  high  spirits  made  them 
invaluable  as  soldiers,  were  being  urged  by  England  to  march  under 
her  banner  and  fight  for  the  liberty  of  Belgium,  for  the  rights  of 
Serbia  and  other  small  nations.  And  Redmond  and  a  great  majority 
of  his  party  went  recruiting  in  Ireland  for  this  purpose. 

After  the  first  generous  period  of  volunteering  was  over  Sinn  Fein 
determinedly  blocked  recruiting  by  declaring  that  the  first  duty  of 
Irishmen  was  to  devote  their  lives  to  secure  the  liberty  and  rights  of 
a  small  nation  known  as  Ireland,  whose  freedom  had  been  taken 
from  her  by  her  strong  neighbor  England  long  before  Serbia  fell 
under  Turkey,  or  Belgium  was  invaded  by  Germany.  Moreover. 
Sinn  Fein  argued  that  Ireland  alone  of  the  ancient  nations  of  Eu- 
rope was  a  country  drained  of  its  young  .manhood,  and  that  it  would 
not  be  long  before  it  would  be  made  up  of  the  very  old  and  the  very 
young,  (  lea red  land-  with  tenants  evicted  to  turn  estates  into  graz- 
ing lands,  artificially  created  famines,  throttled  industries,  and  en- 
forced emigration  in  hundreds  of  thousands  to  America  had  long 
bled  Ireland  white  of  her  most  virile  manhood. 

DEPOPULATION  OF  IRELAND. 

In  1844  Ireland  had  about  5.000.000  cattle  and  9,000,000  people. 
In  1914  Ireland  had  over  10.000.000  cattle  and  little  over  4.000,000 
people. 

England's  assumed  sway  over  Ireland,  as  Arthur  Griffiths  points 
out,  had  obviously  favored  raising  cattle  and  as  patently  checked  the 
raising  of  Irishmen. 

If  Ireland,  traditionally  friendly  with  Belgium  and  France  (the 
Ireland  of  whose  sons  450.000  had  died  in  France's  service  alone  100 
years  after  Sarsfield  led  his  exiled  forces  to  France),  had  in  1914 
recruited  men  for  the  English  Army  at  the  rate  she  was  urged  to  do 
by  Englishmen,  the  Irish  Nation  would  now  be  nearer  extinction 
that  the  Serbian  or  Belgian. 

The  Sinn  Fein  party  was  determined  that  Ireland  should  not  in  a 
generous  moment  commit  national  suicide,  nor  be  driven  to  an  act 
that  would  threaten  the  Gaelic  nation  with  extinction  as  complete 
as  the  ancient  Egyptians. 

Sinn  Fein  went  into  the  highways  and  byways  of  Ireland  preach- 
ing to  the  meager  remnant  of  Ireland's  young  manhood.  Theirs  was 
heroic  work,  making  vocal  the  spirit  of  the  nation  at  a  time  when 
it  meant  one  continuous  succession  of  persecutions,  imprisonments, 
and  hardships.    They  said: 

Bitter  as  the  need  of  our  neighbor  Belgium  is  your  first  duty  is  to  conserve 
the  Irish  race  and  win  its  freedom.  If  any  other  Irishmen  cro  into  this  war 
they  will  go  as  freemen.  Men — as  Irishmen  make  your  stand  at  home!  Win 
your  freedom  here  first.  For  by  the  sacred  memories  -of  Brian.  Hugh,  Tone, 
Parnoll  and  the  rest,  the  Irish  race  is  going  to  live.  It  is  going  to  own  its  own 
country..-  It  is  going  to  rule  its  own- country.  Before  God  Erin  will  again  be 
free ! 

HUSH  WOMEN  AND  CONSCRIPTION. 

And  not  alone  the  men  of  Ireland  but  its  women  folk  answered  the 
cry  that  ran  like  the  old  Fiery  Cross  of  the  Gael  from  hill  to  hill  of 
Ireland. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


71 


To  avert  the  immediate  threat  of  conscription  as  well  as  to  main- 
tain IrelancTs  ancient  demand  for  sovereign  independence  the  men 
of  Ireland  rose  in  revolt  in  1916.  They  succeeded  in  averting  con- 
scription. A  year  later  the  threat  of  conscription  was  renewed  by 
England.  Three  hundred  thousand  Irishmen,  said  to  be  the  best 
missile  troops  in  Europe,  were  hoped  for  by  the  English  military 
authorities.   The  Irish  people  promptly  demurred. 

The  attitude  of  Tory  England  was  voiced  in  the  London  Spectator, 
which  headed  an  editorial  on  Irish  ( onscription :  "  Don't  argue ; 
shoot!*' — the  Irish  if  they  do  not  comply.  The.  Sinn  Fein  campaign 
now  swept  the  country,  and  it  made  the  headway  it  did  simply  be- 
cause it  was  voicing  the  spirit  of  the  people.  It  drew  into  closest 
union  with  it  Labor's  political  party  and  the  dignitaries  of  the 
church;  in  fact,  the  whole  nation  of  Ireland,  including  a  large  num- 
ber of  frotestants,  was  firmly  opposed  to  conscription. 

The  Independent  Orangemen  marched  with  the  Sinn  Fein  fol- 
lowers in  protest  against  it.  The  Protestant  Women's  Organization 
was  one  of  the  most  active  against  conscription.  At  this  time  there 
were  in  English  factories  alone  3,000.000  men  employed  in  ad- 
dition to  all  her  other  millions  of  men,  and  the  Irish  people  well 
asked  themselves,  "  Hasn't  the  Irish  race  the  same  right  to  continue 
its  existence  that  the  English  race  has?  Why  should  we  be  deci- 
mated (" 

At  this  time  also  there  were  hundreds  of  thousands  of  men  in  one 
miners'  union  alone  in  the  south  of  Wales.  Xo  other  civilized  country 
in  Europe  was  so  disproportionately  lacking  in  men  of  military  age 
as  Ireland  was. 

STATISTICS  OF  IRISH  MAN  POWER. 

By  the  1911  statistics  there  were  in  Ireland  of  military  age  only 
776.000  men,  married  and  unmarried,  fit  and  unfit.  Great  numbers  of 
the  younger  and  stronger  Irishmen  had  for  decades  been  compelled 
to  go  overseas  to  America,  because  of  the  system  to  which  Arthur 
Chamberlain  (brother  of  Joseph  Chamberlain  and  managing  director 
of  Kynoch's)  referred  in  his  interview  in  July,  1907,  with  Arthur 
Griffiths  in  Dublin,  when  he  said : 

That  it  wns  a  definite  part  of  English  policy  to  prevent  any  serious  industrial 
or  commercial  development  in  Ireland.  That  he  himself  was  convinced  that 
that  policy  was  wrong,  but  that  it  was  equally  held  and  practiced  by  Tories 
and  Liberals,  and  it  would  be  practiced  until  Ireland  had  a  form  of  government 
under  which  she  controlled  her  own  finances  and  had  the  power  to  impose 
protective  tariffs. 

In  January,  1916,  Lord  Wimborne,  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland, 
reported  to  Lord  Kitchener  that  there  were  then  only  about  400,000 
single  men  of  military  age  in  Ireland;  that  of  these  at  least  252,000 
were  essential  to  agriculture,  and  other  industries  would  absorb 
about  48,000.  which  left  a  balance  of  possibly  100,000  men  available 
for  the  army. 

FEAR  OF  A  NEW  PLANTATION. 

The  women  of  Ireland  now  played  a  most  active  part  in  opposing 
fhe  application  of  conscription  to  Ireland.  The  men  abhorred  it 
because  it  meant  the  usurpation  of  the  nation's  rights  over  her  own 
man  power. 


•72 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  women  rebelled  Against  it  for  another  cause;  they  knew  if 
the  men  of  Ireland  Were  decimated  any  further  that  it  would  mean 
a  new  "plantation"  of  alien  men,  of  English  returned  soldiers,  in 
Ireland  upon  the  11.000.000  acres  which  still  remain  untilled  in  the 
great  estates  and  available  for  division. 

This  would  mean  eventually  the  extinction  of  the  race  and  the 
passing  of  the  nation.  The  women  of  Ireland  knew  that  already 
close  to  1,000  acres  had  been  planted  by  returned  English  veterans; 
so  had  the  men  of  Ireland  faltered  in  their  opposition  to  conscription 
the  women  of  Ireland  would  have  urged  them  forward. 

They  knew  that  the  loss  of  their  own  manhood  would  have  meant 
that  eventually  they  would  have  had  to  mate  with  the  men  of  the 
new  plantation  and  bring  up  their  children,  not  as  Irishmen,  but  as 
"loyal  citizens"  of  the  British  Empire,  and  subjects  of  the  country 
which  had  accomplished  the  ruin  of  their  own  race.  They  would 
prefer  death  to  such  a  prospect. 

So  the  women  of  Ireland,  in  their  hundreds  of  thousands,  Avent 
out  and  pledged  resistance  by  every  means  in  their  powTer  to  con- 
scription. They  vowed  they  would  not  take  any  posts  made  vacant 
by  the  discharge  of  men  from  employment,  and  if  in  1918  the  leaders 
of  the  older  political  parry  and  the  dignitaries  of  the  Catholic 
Church  had  not  come  in  with  the  people  of  Ireland  and  compelled 
action  as  a  whole  nation  and  averted  conscription,  the  men  and  the 
women  of  Ireland  had  planned  to  die  at  their  own  thresholds  or  on 
their  own  hillsides  in  little  groups  to  avert  national  disaster. 

I  have  been  told  even  in  Washington  that  the  anticonscription  agi- 
tation was  ordered  from  Rome.  I  would  say  in  rebuttal  of  this  false 
bit  of  propaganda  that  the  leaders  of  the  National  Party  in  Ireland 
to-day,  Catholic  and  Protestant,  will  upon  national  questions  take 
no  dictation  from  any  power  outside  their  own  country.  They  are 
entirely  competent  to  decide  ever}7  Irish  question  themselves. 

WHY  AMERICA  SHOULD  INTERVENE. 

The  third  argument  that  has  been  advanced  against  America's 
intervention  in  Irish  affairs  is  simply.  Why  should  America  inter- 
fere ?  I  have  been  told  that  this  is  a  very  difficult  question  to  answer. 
In  my  belief,  to  every  genuine  American  a  much  more  difficult  ques- 
tion to  answer  is.  Why  shouldn't  America  intervene  and  aid  the 
Irish  people  in  securing  the  right  to  govern  themselves  in  whatever 
form  they  may  decide? 

America  should  intervene — 

Because  of  all  that  is  best,  in  American  traditions  and  ideals  for 
human  liberty. 

Because  of  the  statements  made  by  President  Wilson  in  the  Con- 
gress before  he  asked  the  Congress  to  vote  for  America's  entry  into 
the  war. 

Because  of  the  repeated  statements  on  the  part  of  the  President 
since  that  time  that  America  was  fighting  for  democracy  and  to  end 
oppression. 

Because  the  Nation  in  going  to  war  sincerely  believed  in  these  state- 
ments and  felt  that  they  were  sending  out  their  sons  to  fight  for 
oppressed  nations. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


73 


Because  there  is  no  nation  in  the  world  more  terribly  oppressed 
nor  for  a  greater  period  of  time  than  the  Irish,  except  the  Jews, 
whose  wrongs  are  now  being  righted. 

Because  the  American  Army  was  made  up  of  30  per  cent  of  men  of 
Irish  blood  and  the  American  Navy  40  per  cent  of  men  of  Irish  blood, 
and  in  the  hearts  of  every  one  of  these  men  there  was  the  hope  that 
their  sacrifice  would  not  alone  strengthen  their  beloved  country, 
America,  but  would  insure  freedom  for  the  old  land  of  their  fore- 
fathers. 

Because  when  America  offered  her  sons  by  the  millions  for  the 
cause  of  liberty  and  her  gold  flowed  in  unending  streams  in  the  cause 
of  freedom,  not  only  one  but  many  States  appealed  to  their  people 
in  the  words  of  this  Minneapolis  circular : 

Wfc  have  entered  this  war  for  an  ideal — the  right  to  liberty,  happiness,  op- 
portunity— not  for  ourselves  alone,  but  for  all  the  peoples  of  all  the  world. 

Because  America  can  not  afford  to  go  down  in  history  as  having 
been  false  to  her  first  ally  and  constant  friend — Ireland. 

BRITISH  LABOR  FOR  SELF-DETERMINATION. 

Because  the  British  Labor  Party  has  definitely  placed  as  a  plank  in 
its  platform  this  clause,  "  Self-determination  for  all  peoples,  includ- 
ing Ireland  " — as  stated  by  Arthur  Henderson,  leader  of  that  party, 
in  reply  to  Samuel  Gompers  last  summer. 

Because  Lloyd-George,  in  outlining  his  war  aims  last  January,  said 
concerning  colonies  of  negroes  in  South  Africa  : 

*  *  *  The  inhabitants  should  be  placed  under  the  control  of  an  adminis- 
tration acceptable  to  themselves.  *  *  *  The  general  principle  of  national 
self-determination  is  as  applicable  in  their  case  as  in  those  of  occupied  Euro- 
pean territory. 

Because,  as  the  Freeman's  Journal,  organ  of  the  Dillon  political 
party  in  Ireland,  said  editorially : 

Were  the  United  States  to  accept  the  English  contention  that  she  has  no 
right  to  decide  on  the  merits  of  the  case  as  between  Great  Britain  and  Ireland, 
^he  might  please  the  British  Government,  but  she  would  delight  even  more  the 
rulers  of  the  central  powers,  whom  she  would  present  with  a  precedent  which 
will  be  invaluable  at  the  Peace  Conference  when  the  cases  of  Poland,  Bohemia, 
and  Transylvania  come  up  for  final  settlement.  If  Ireland's  is  a  domestic 
question,  all  those  are  also  domestic  questions,  and  if  the  rule  is  to  be  that  a 
State  may  dictate  to  an  enemy  at  the  point  of  the  sword,  but  must  not  remon- 
strate over  wrongs  with  a  cobelligerent,  the  new  league  of  nations  is  not  likely 
to  prove  of  more  benefit  to  oppressed  races  than  Metternich's  Holy  Alliance  after 
rhe  Napoleonic  wars. 

AMERICA  THE  WORLD'S  ARBITER. 

America  must  intervene  to  aid  Ireland  in  her  struggle  for  self-de- 
termination, because  America  is  now  the  world's  arbiter.  It  is  an  in- 
controvertible fact  that  by  this  country's  marvelous  outpouring  of 
men.  money,  and  munitions  she  became  the  decisive  factor  in  the 
winning  of  the  world  war. 

To-day,  as  at  every  peace  conference  of  the  past,  there  will  be  one 
dominant  voice  present,  and  to-day,  for  the  first  time  in  the  world's 
history,  it  is  that  of  a  genuine  democracy,  of  a  country  governed  by 
the  people  and  for  the  people,  one  so  strong  that  no  one  can  afford  to 


74 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


lose  her  good  will,  not  even  England  if  asked  to  release  Ireland;  one 
so  strong  that  she  can  set  the  torch  of  liberty  ablaze  at  the  gateways 
of  every  country  in  the  world  as  well  as  her  own. 

I>ut  this  great  moment  was  foreseen  and  arranged  to  he  met  by  a 
school  of  diplomacy  and  politics  which  is  the  oldest  and  most  finished 
in  the  world.  Consequently  with  regard  to  Ireland  this  country  has 
been  filled  with  British  propaganda.  It  has  sat  in  the  editorial  chairs 
of  America.  It  has  stalked  like  a  giant  through  the  money  markets. 
It  has  slipped  in  gentler  guise  into  the  Federal  Capital. 

It  will  confront  America's  envoys  at  the  peace  table.  And  there 
will  be  played  the  finest  game  of  diplomatic  bluff  that  the  world  has 
ever  seen.  America's  late  cobelligerent  holds  strong  cards.  She  will 
hold  in  her  hand  as  regards  Ireland  two  very  strong  pairs — the  one, 
of  present  possession,  although  by  force;  the  other,  the  most  effective 
imperial  diplomacy. 

But  America  holds  all  the  aces — financial  and  commercial  superi- 
ority ;  unlimited  wealth  in  the  future  within  herself  and  not  dependent 
upon  any  outside  factor:  and,  last  and  greatest  of  all,  moral  right. 

IRELAND  AT  THE  PEACE  CONFERENCE. 

When  there  comes  to  the  peace  conference  the  harried  leaders  of 
gallant  Ireland,  which  has  fought  so  valiantly  and  long  for  freedom — 
when  they  come  to  the  gates  of  the  conference  and  ask  that  the  people 
of  Ireland  shall  have  the  right  to  select  for  themselves  the  form  of 
government  under  which  they  desire  to  live,  I  know  what  Washington, 
Franklin,  Jefferson,  and  Lincoln  would  do  if  they  were  there.  They 
would  be  true  to  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  the  greatest  charter 
of  human  liberty  the  world  has  ever  seen. 

I  know  what  Lincoln  would  do  if  he  were  there.  I  know  what  Lin- 
coln said  on  just  such  a  cause.  I  copied  the  words  here  in  Washington 
in  the  room  in  which  he  died : 

I  have  never  had  a  feeling  politically  that  did  not  spring  from  the  sentiments 
embodied  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  *  *  *  the  great  principle  that 
kept  this  confederacy  together  was  *  *  *  that  sentiment  in  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  which  gave  liberty  not  alone  to  the  people  of  this  country  but. 
I  hope,  to  the  world  for  all  future  time.  It  was  that  which  gave  promise  that  in 
due  time  the  weight  would  be  lifted  from  the  shoulders  of  all  men. 

America  alone  can.  without  bloodshed,  lift  from  the  shoulders  of 
Ireland — our  Dark  Rosaleen — the  unlovely  and  unwieldly  bulk  of 
England's  weight,  wdiich  she  has  resisted  with  such  fierce  and  proud 
endurance  for  700  years. 

If  Washington  and  Lincoln  were  alive  to-day,  I  know  what  they 
would  do:  and,  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee.  I 
believe  I  know  what  you  are  going  to  do.    [Great  applause.] 

(Miss  Hughes  then  expressed  a  desire  to  add  to  the  record,  without 
reading  it.  an  editorial  from  Nationality  of  February  23.  1918,  con- 
cerning "Ireland's  trade  conditions,) 

STRANGLING   IRISH  INDUSTRIES. 

[Nationality,  Saturday.  Feb.  23,  1918.] 

In  the  days  of  Elizabeth  England  made  it  treason  for  an  Irishman  to  own  a 
ship ;  in  the  days  of  Charles  II  England  made  it  felony  for  the  Irish  to  expori 
produce  in  Irish  ships — or  in  English  ships  without  England's  leave — in  the  days 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


75 


•of  William  III  England  made  it  criminal  for  Ireland  to  carry  on  its  staple 
manufacture;  in  the  days  of  the  Georges  England  interdicted  all  trade  between 
Ireland  and  the  outside  world  and  loaded  our  linens,  cottons,  glass,  brassware, 
and  50  other  industries  with  prohibitive  duties ;  in  the  days  of  William  IV 
England  prohibited  our  tobacco  industry;  in  the  days  of  Victoria  England  an- 
nihilated our  fisheries ;  and  having  succeeded  after  300  years  of  repression  in 
driving  the  Irish  from  tillage  and  manufacturing  industry  back  into  the  shep- 
herd state,  England  lamented  to  Europe  our  poverty  and  our  backwardness. 

Three  hundred  years  have  brought  changes  in  England's  circumstances — none 
to  England's  heart  or  England's  policy  toward  this  country.  So  long  as  England 
controls  the  customs  of  Ireland  she  controls  the  trade  and  commerce  of  Ireland, 
and  is  armed  to  destroy  that  trade  and  commerce  when  she  will.  In  the  last 
few  days  England  has  shown  her  hand  in  Arklow.  In  that  town  there  is  a 
factory  of  Kynoch's,  which  the  English  Government  sought  to  close  down  in 
1907,  and  now  seeks  to  close  down  again  in  1918.    *    *  * 

The  destruction  of  the  Arklow  industry  has  been  an  object  of  the  British 
Government  for  the  past  10  years.  In  1915  we  published  in  Nationality  a 
signed  article  on  the  subject,  which  we  to-day  reproduce,  since  thousands  who 
did  not  read  it  then  will  read  it  now.  Let  them  ponder  the  facts  and  they  will 
realize  that  while  England  holds  her  grip  on  this  country — holds  our  customs 
in  her  hands — Irish  industry  will  never  be  allowed  to  develop. 

FROM   NATIONALITY,   JULY   31,  101". 

Some  of  the  orators  and  journalists  who  support  the  English  Government  in 
Ireland  have  discovered  a  grievance  against  that  institution  and,  greatly  daring, 
grumbled.  The  grievance  is  that  firms  in  Ireland  are  not  getting  orders  for 
munitions.  The  English  Government,  however,  is  going  to  look  into  the  matter, 
and  so  all  is  well,  and  those  who  believe  that  that  Government  has  ceased  to 
swindle  Ireland  can  again  occupy  their  minds  with  remembering  Belgium,  if 
they  do  not  read  further. 

In  July,  1907,  the  managing  director  of  Kynoch's  wrote  to  me  stating  that  the 
chairman  of  that  company  had  read  something  of  what  I  had  written  on  Irish 
affairs,  particularly  on  industrial  conditions  in  Ireland,  and  that  he  was  anxious 
to  discuss  the  matter  of  industrial  development  in  Ireland.  I  met  Mr.  Arthur 
Chamberlain,  chairman  of  Kynoch's,  and  Mr.  Cocking,  the  manager,  by  ar- 
rangement at  the  Shelbourne  Hotel  in  Dublin.  We  had  three  interviews — 
at  each  of  which  I  was  accompanied  by  a  friend  of  mine,  a  Dublin  man  of  busi- 
ness. It  was  obvious  on  the  second  interview  that  Mr.  Chamberlain's  real 
•object  was  to  protect  Kynoch's  from  loss  over  its  Arklow  factory.  Eventually 
this  was  effected.  The  substance  of  Mr.  Chamberlain's  statements  in  the  matter 
will  be  of  interest  just  now  to  those  who  believe  in  leopards  changing  their 
spots,  and  other  phenomena. 

ARTHUR  CHAMBERLAIN'S  VIEWS. 

Mr.  Chamberlain  opened  by  saying  that  he  had  read  a  speech  of  mine,  issued 
as  a  pamphlet,  on  the  Sinn  Fein  policy,  with  the  industrial  portion  of  which  he 
was  in  complete  accord.  As  chairman  of  Kynoch's,  he  had  caused  that  firm  to 
have  something  that  might  be  called  a  private  industrial  survey  of  Ireland 
made.  The  result  was  to  satisfy  him  as  a  business  man  that  Ireland  was  one 
of  the  richest  countries  in  the  material  of  great  industries ;  that  her  people  had 
a  sreat  natural  aptitude  for  commerce  and  manufacture :  and  that  nothing  but 
ignorance,  lack  of  capital,  or  repressive  government  stood  in  the  way  of  making 
her  a  great  industrial  and  commercial  State.  All  this  was  trite,  but  it  was 
interesting  to  listen  to  it  recited  from  the  lips  of  the  head  of  England's  greatest' 
industrial  concern. 

Mr.  Chamberlain  went  on  to  describe  the  coming  of  Kynoch's  to  Ireland  and 
the  birth  of  which  it  was  to  be  the  germ.  Kynoch's,  satisfied  by  their  investi- 
gators and  chemists  of  the  teeming  natural  wealth  of  Ireland,  had  planned 
:i  scheme  of  industrial  development  through  subsidiary  Irish  companies.  The 
Southeast  of  Ireland,  which  Kynoch's  had  discovered  to  be  a  richer  pottery 
district  than  the  famous  pottery  country  of  England,  was  to  be  worked  by 
:m  Irish  company  financed  in  the  beginning  by  Kynoch,  the  matchless  iron  of 
Leitrim  was  again  to  be  wrought  by  Irish  hands,  and  so  forth.  A  pleasant 
scheme,  after  describing  which  Mr.  Chamberlain  requested  my  opinion.  My 
opinion  was  that,  to  be  wholly  beneficial  to  Ireland,  the  scheme  should  be 


76 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


worked  altogether  on  Irish  capital ;  that  I  realized  it  was  Impossible  in  the 
present  circumstances  of  Ireland  to  induce  Irish  capitalists  to  venture  on 
any  Large  scheme  of  national  industrial  development;  that  therefore  a  scheme 
by  w  hich  Kynoch's  would  initially  supply  the  capital  and  organize  the  develop- 
ment through  Irish  companies  would  he  acceptable  under  some  restrictions. 
Bui  I  asked  Mr.  Chamberlain  whether  he.  as  a  great  English  industrialist, 
really  believed  that  the  English  Government  would  encourage  Kynoch's  or 
any  other  firm  or  syndicate  which  it  could  bring  pressure  upon  to  develop 
Ireland's  industrial  arm. 

ENGLISH   POLICY   OF  REPRESSION. 

Mr.  Chamberlain  replied  that  he  did  not ;  that  it  was  a  definite  part  of  English 
policy  lo  prevent  any  serious  industrial  or  commercial  development  in  Ire- 
land ;  that  he  himself  was  convinced  that  policy  was  wrong,  but  that  it  was 
equally  held  and  practiced  by  Tories  and  Liberals,  and  it  would  be  practiced 
until  Ireland  had  a  form  of  home  rule  under  which  she  controlled  her  own 
finances  and  had  power  to  impose  protective  tariffs.  No  other  form  of  home 
rule  could  be  commercially  useful  to  Ireland.  Mr.  Chamberlain  was  very 
anxious  that  I  should  not  believe  he  held  the  same  views  as  his  brother  Joseph. 
He  was  and  had  always  been  a  Liberal  and  a  home  ruler,  and  he  contributed  a 
Large  sum  annually  to  the  Liberal  Party  funds. 

These  facts,  as  I  told  him,  I  already  knew.  I  then  inquired,  that  understanding 
as  he  did  the  secret  attitude  of  English  Government  toward  any  scheme  to 
seriously  develop  Ireland  industrially,  whether  Kynoch's  would  face  the  Gov- 
ernment opposition  and  carry  out  its  scheme,  or  attempt  to  do  so. 

GOVERNMENT  THREATS  TO  KYNOCH'S. 

To  this  Mr.  Chamberlain  indirectly  replied  by  detailing  the  history  of  the 
Kynoch  branch  in  Arklow  and  the  efforts  made  by  the  government  of  Mr.  .Bal- 
four and  the  government  of  Sir  Henry  Campbell-Bannerman  to  force  the  firm 
to  shut  down  the  branch.  Finally,  to  compel  Kynoch's  to  leave  Ireland,  Govern- 
ment contracts  were  removed.  Mr.  Chamberlain  described  a  somewhat  lively 
interview  he  had  recently  had  with  Mr.  Herbert  Gladstone,  now  Lord  Glad- 
stone, in  which  that  minister  told  him  definitely  that  if  the  Arklow  factory 
continued  the  Government  would  see  that  as  little  Government  work  as  possible 
would  be  given  to  Kynoch's.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Government  offered  no 
objection  to  Kynoch's  establishing  themselves  in  "  any  part  of  the  empire 
except  Ireland,"  and  the  fullest  support  was  offered  to  the  Kynoch  branch  in 
South  Africa. 

I  inquired  why  Mi\  Chamberlain  came  to  the  Sinn  Feiners  instead  of  to  the 
parliamentary  party,  who  were  allies  and  were  supposed  to  be  the  masters  of 
the  English  Liberal  Government. 

Mr.  Chamberlain  replied  that  he  had  gone  to  the  parliamentary  party;  that 
the  leaders  know  all  that  was  taking  place1,  but  that  they  would  do  nothing 
except  privately  appeal  to  the  Government.  Mr.  Redmond,  Mr.  Chamberlain 
said,  Mas  an  amiable  man,  but  he  was  putty  in  the  hands  of  English  ministers. 

PLANS  FOR  POTTERY  ABANDONED. 

A  further  interview  developed  Mr.  Chamberlain's  plan  for  the  cooperation  of 
Sinn  Fein.  I  inquired  from  him  whether  in  return  he  would  guarantee  Kynoch's 
would  proceed  with  their  original  plan  for  industrial  development  in  Ireland. 
Whether,  for  instance,  they  would  supply  the  means  for  initiating  the  great 
pottery  industry  of  the  southeast. 

Mr.  Chamberlain  hesitated,  but  finally  replied  he  could  not  give  a  guaranty. 
The  Government  could  hit  Kynoch's  in  so  many  ways  elsewhere  that  they 
could  not  as  business  men  risk  going  on  with  the  scheme.  If  there  were  home 
rule  in  the  country,  Kynoch's  might  risk  it.  I  remarked  that  no  measure  of 
home  rule  which  permitted  Ireland  to  protect  its  industries  would  be  passed 
by  either  Liberals  or  Tories.  Mr.  Chamberlain  assented,  but  added  that  the 
Irish  had  political  strength  although  they  did  not  know  how  to  use  it  to  coerce 
ministers.  However,  the  cooperation  of  Sinn  Fein  was  not  to  be  considered 
unless  Kynoch's  were  prepared  to  <;o  on  with  the  original  scheme,  and  thus 
this  aspect  of  the  matter  ended.  To  save  the  factory  at  Arklow,  however — 
the  closing  of  which  would  mean  the  ruin  of  the  town — we  put  Mr.  Chamber- 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


lain  in  communication  with  certain  Irish  business  men.  who  afterwards  at- 
tended a  small  meeting  in  the  Shelbourne  Hotel,  as  a  result  of  which  an 
arrangement  was  made  which  enabled  the  factory  t»»  be  carried  on  without 
exposing  Kynoch's  to  further  boycotting  by  the  English  Government. 

.1  trust  the  gentlemen  who  know  that  "  this  is  Ireland's  war."  and  who 
•demand  a  share  in  the  making  of  munitions,  will  be  comforted. 

Akthur  Griffith. 

The  British  Government,  foiled  in  1907.  has  struck  home  at  Arklow  in  1918. 
The  people  of  that  town  may  take  it  that  the  man  whom  the  chairman  of 
Kynoch's  described  to  us  in  1907  as  "  putty  in  the  hands  of  English  ministers  " 
is  putty  in  their  hands  still  and  that  his  function  is  to  make  them  agree  to 
die  industrially  by  stages. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen,  quite  a  number  of 
men  have  been  here  since  yesterday  morning  representing  organiza- 
tions throughout  the  country.  They  are  here  to  go  on  record.  I 
want  your  permission  to  have  them  state  whom  they  represent  and 
what,  and  to  briefly  express  their  views. 

The  Chairman.  Will  you  call  the  names ! 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Mr.  Richard  Dwyer.  of  Boston.  Mass.  represent- 
ing the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians. 

Mr.  Dwyer.  Mr.  Chairman.  I  represent  30,600  citizens  of  Massa- 
chusetts who  have  given  5.000  of.  their  boys  that  America  might  se- 
cure democracy  all  over  the  world.  I  speak  not  only  for  the  men  and 
women  of  Irish  blood  of  Massachusetts,  but  I  feel  I  speak  also  for 
the  whole  citizenship  of  Massachusetts,  because,  not  very  long  ago. 
the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts  unanimously  passed  a  resolution 
demanding  independence  for  Ireland. 

The  point  has  been  made  here  of  sectarian  dilferences.  The  Catho- 
lic ancestry  of  the  leading  Irish  people  and  the  protestant  ancestry 
of  President  McKinley  both  sutfered  for  the  same  cause. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  PATRICK  0'HAGERTY.  OF  SPRINGFIELD. 

MASS. 

Mr.  O'Hagerty.  On  July  28,  1775.  the  American  Congress  drafted 
an  appeal  and  presented  it  to  the  people  of  Ireland  which  began  in 
this  way :  "  YVe  desire  the  good  opinion  of  the  virtuous  and  humane. n 
Gentlemen,  you  know  the  answer  which  the  people  of  Ireland  gave  to 
that  appeal. 

Ireland  appeals  to  you  through  her  children  who  are  in  exile, 
through  the  leaders  of  her  race  who  are  unlawfully  imprisoned  in 
England,  and  she  appeals  to  you  in  the  same  way  that  your  ancestors 
appealed  to  her. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  JOHN  J.  HEARN.  OF  WESTFIELD.  MASS. 

Mr.  Hearx.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee.  I 
come  from  Representative  Treadway's  district,  and  I  feel  I  speak 
the'  sentiments  of  practically  everybody  in  western  Massachusetts 
favoring  this  resolution.  The  question  is :  Can  America  do  justice 
to  herself  unless  she  favors  it !  TTe  entered  this  conflict  and  enun- 
ciated our  principles.  These  principles  were  in  favor  of  liberty 
throughout  the  world,  in  favor  of  self-determination  for  all  small 
nations,  and  this  most  assuredly  includes  Ireland.    Can  we  to-day 


78 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


allow  that  question  to  stand  and  not  be  properly  taken  care  of  by 
our  representatives  at  the  peace  conference?  I  believe  that  action  is 
absolutely  necessary.    I  thank  you. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  HUMPHREY  O'SULLIVAN,  OF  LOWELL,  MASS. 

Mr.  (VSillivax.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee. 
I  came  from  Lowell,  Mass.,  the  home  of  the  great  American,  Cardinal 
O'Conneti,  and  well  known  as  the  Spindle  City  of  America.  At  a 
great  gathering  held  in  Lowell.  Mass.,  last  week  there  were  assembled 
the  representatives  of  all  the  Irish  societies  of  the  city.  It  was  a 
tremendously  large  meeting,  and  at  that  meeting  resolutions  were 
passed  in  favor  of  self-determination  for  Ireland,  and  those  reso- 
lutions  have  been  forwarded  to  the  Congressman  of  the  fifth  district, 
the  Hon.  John  Jacob  Rogers,  a  member  of  your  committee. 

Mr.  Rogers.  May  T  add  that  I  had  the  pleasure  of  inserting  those 
resolutions  in  the  Record  in  full  yesterday  morning? 

Mr.  O'Sullivan.  I  thank  you. 

I  am  here  at  the  request  of  the  United  Irish  Societies  of  Lowell, 
Mass.,  to  voice  their  sentiments  on  behalf  of  self-determination  for 
Ireland.  The  city  of  Lowell  has  a  population  of  125,000  people. 
Sixty-five  per  cent  of  that  population  is  Catholic.  It  is  an  industrial 
city,  and  you  can  count  45  different  nationalities  among  its  inhabi- 
tants. 

I  have  been  commissioned  to  come  before  you  and  impress  upon 
you  their  attitude  on  the  momentous  question  now  before  you  for 
consideration. 

As  a  member  of  Typographical  Union  No.  310,  of  Lowell,  I  feel 
that  I  am  at  liberty  to  speak  for  the  labor  organizations  of  that 
industrial  city. 

As  a  merchant  and  one  affiliated  with  the  financial  interests  of  the 
city,  and  State  of  Massachusetts,  I  feel  also  at  liberty  to  speak  for 
them,  for  it  is  my  solemn  opinion  that  in  the  great  State  of  Massa- 
chusetts an  overwhelming  majority  of  its  citizens  are  in  favor  of 
giving  a  square  deal  to  Ireland  in  this  crisis. 

I  am  here  to  add  the  worth  and  weight  of  my  commendation  to  the 
resolution  that  has  been  passed  and  presented  by  our  Congressman, 
and  I  was  very  much  shocked  and  annoyed  just  a  while  ago  to  hear 
Mr.  Fox  make  the  statement  that  the  men  who  are  here  in  favor  of 
this  resolution  were  pro-German.  I  will  ask  Mr.  Fox  if  he  still  be- 
lieves what  he  said  a  moment  ago,  that  the  people  who  are  advocating 
this  resolution  are  pro-German. 

Mr.  Fox.  I  believe  all  who  are  members  of  the  Ancient  Order  of 
Llibernians  are  pro-German. 

Mr.  O'SullivanI  That  is  not  the  question.  You  stated  that  those 
men  who  are  here  are  pro-German.   Isn't  that  so,  Mr.  Chairman  \ 

The  Chairman.  I  can't  pass  on  that.  You  ask  him  the  question 
and  let  him  answer  it. 

Mr.  O'Sullivan.  If  you  said  that  these  men  who  are  here  to-day 
in  favor  of  this  resolution  are  pro-German,  you  are  falsifying. 

Mr.  Fox.  That  is  all  right,  sir. 

Mr.  O'Sullivan.  I  appeal  to  my  Congressman,  the  Hon.  John 
Jacob  Rogers,  that  it  is  a  fact  that  I  arn  and  have  been  pro-ally  since 
the  drop  of  the  hat.  [Applause.] 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


79 


Mr.  Rogers.  There  is  no  question  about  that  with  anyone  who 
knows  you. 

Mr.  O"  Sullivan.  My  sympathies  were  with  the  French  in  the  con- 
flict of  1S70.  and  my  sympathies  have  so  continued  down  to  the  recent 
conflict.  My  sympathies  were  with  the  French  m  1914,  but  if  the  Eng- 
lish joined  with  the  French  I  couldn't  change  my  attitude,  because  I 
knew  that  eventually  the  American  Nation  would  be  drawn  into  the 
conflict.  I  was  pro-ally  from  the  drop  of  the  hat.  Therefore.  Mr.  Fox. 
I  will  not  let  you  get  away  from  here  with  that  statement  uncontra- 
dicted, and  I  want  to  tell  y.ou  further,  sir.  that  there  is  no  one  that 
has  appeared  here  in  favor  of  these  resolutions  who  has  done  half  as 
much  good  for  them  as  you  have.  [Applause.] 

In  1914  home  rule  for  Ireland  was  passed  over  the  veto  of  the 
House  of  Lords,  but  it  has  not  been  put  in  operation  yet :  but  in 
February.  1918,  if  some  wise  prophet  had  told  Lloyd  George  that 
victory  of  the  allies  was  obtainable  on  November  11  of  that  year, 
provided  he  gave  complete  independence  to  Ireland,  he  would  wel- 
come the  offer  as  an  opportunity  to  save  England  from  ruin  and  de- 
feat. The  present  moment  is  ominous  with  possibilities.  Until 
America  entered  the  conflict  on  the  side  of  the  allies  they  were  beaten : 
they  were  only  waiting  for  the  count.  Each  nation  was  asking  the 
other:  a  TThat  are  you  fighting  for  T"  And  it  remained  for  our  great 
President  to  formulate  a  platform  broad,  wide,  and  -trong  enough 
and  appealing  enough  to  the  hearts  of  all  the  peoples  of  the  world  to 
make  the  issue  inspiring — to  make  the  world  free  for  democracy. 

He  did  more.  He  took  the  side  of  the  oppressed  peoples  of  the 
world.  He  drove  a  wedge  between  autocracy  and  democracy  and 
told  the  oppressed  of  all  nations  that  the  success  of  the  allies*  cause 
meant  the  freedom  and  "  self-determination  r  of  the  small  nations  of 
the  world,  and  England  and  the  allies  said  ;*  Yes." 

You  will  remember  that  among  the  11  articles  promulgated  by 
our  great  President  one  was  for  the  freedom  of  the  seas,  and  you 
will  notice  that  England  insists  upon  the  right  of  search,  the  right 
of  embargo,  and  the  right  of  blockade.  When  those  .  14  points 
were  announced,  why  didn't  she  take  this  attitude  on  them  ?  In  my 
opinion  upon  the  question  of  •■  self-determination  "*  for  Ireland  she 
will  tell  you  that  the  Irish  people  can  decide  what  form  of  govern- 
ment they  want,  but  in  the  process  a  few  intellectuals  in  Ulster  must 
not  be  coerced,  and  why  {  Is  it  because  they  fear  the  domination  of 
Catholic  Ireland?  The  city  of  Lowell.  Mass..  as  I  have  already  said, 
is  65  per  cent  Catholic,  yet  four-fifths  of  the  city  government  is 
Protestant,  and  its  entire  school  board.  Surely,  this  would  not  indi- 
cate intolerance  on  the  part  of  the  Catholics. 

I  can  not  dismiss  this  question  without  taking  notice  of  the  number 
of  men  contributed  and  the  valor  of  Irish  soldiers  in  the  English 
service.  I  desire  to  emphasize  the  figures  given  by  Miss  Hughes, 
and  when  to  these  numbers  are  added  the  Irishmen  who  joined  the 
forces  from  Australia.  Xew  Zealand.  South  Africa,  and  Canada — all 
in  face  of  the  fact  that  England  withheld  from  Ireland  the  freedom 
she  claimed  for  Belgium  and  the  other  small  nations — Ireland  did 
her  share  and  more  than  her  share  in  the  war. 

I  thank  you  genrlemen  for  your  patient  hearing,  and  wish  you 
success. 


80 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Mr.  Sabath.  There  are  several  Members  of  Congress  who  intro- 
duced  resolutions  on  the  subject  who  requested  us  to  be  heard,  and 
there  are  also  other  Members  who  desire  to  speak,  and  I  wish  to 
know  whether  any  arrangement  of  time  has  been  allotted  to  them 
or  arc  we  giving  all  of  the  time  to  the  delegations  that  are  here,  and 
will  we  give  additional  time  to  some  others  who  Wish  to  be  heard  at 
some  future  time? 

The  Chairman.  As  far  as  I  was  concerned  I  promised  Miss  Rankin 
to  give  her  an  opportunity  to  be  heard. 

Sir.  Sabath.  There  is  Mp.  Lundeen.  who  has  a  resolution  on  the 
subject  who  also  desires  to  be  heard,  and  then  there  is  my  colleague, 
Mr.  John  W.  Rainey.  who  was  preparing  a  resolution  on  this  sub- 
ject but  didn't  have  time  to  introduce  it,  is  here. 

Mi'.  Gallagher.  Mr.  Rainey  will  be  called  on  later. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  EDWARD  RYAN  OF  SYRACUSE. 

Mr.  Ryan.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee:  I 
w  ill  simply  content  myself  with  stating  that  I  am  here  to-day  as 
the  representative  of  65.000  men,  members  of  the  Catholic  Mutual 
Benefit  Association.  We  have  5,000  men  bearing  arms;  that  they 
were  not  shirking  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that,  up  to  the  present 
time,  we  have  been  called  upon  or  notified  of  125  deaths  fighting  in 
the  cause  of  human  liberty. 

I  ask  this  committee,  on  behalf  of  the  young  men  who  are  over 
there  and  on  behalf  of  the  members  who  are  here  at  home  and  who 
have  been  supporting  the  Government  every  minute  of  their  lives, 
asking  you  representatives  of  the  American  people  to  remember  the 
grand  old  Declaration  of  Independence  that  declared  and  set  forth 
to  the  world  the  principle  that  all  men  were  created  free  and  equal. 
We  wish  you  to  apply  that  principle  now  to  the  case  of  Ireland. 
We  ask  you  not  to  make  an  exception  of  her.  We  ask  you  to  couple 
Ireland  with  all  those  other  downtrodden  small  nations  of  Europe, 
and  say  that  we  mean  Ireland  as  well  as  we  mean  Poland,  or  Ukraine, 
or  any  of  the  countries. 

This  morning,  before  coming  up  to  this  committee  room,  I  wan- 
dered over  into  the  house  Avhere  President  Lincoln  died,  and  in  look- 
ing around  saw  a  card  with  this  inscription  which  to  my  mind  should 
typify  the  position  of  America :  "  I  must  stand  with  everybody  that 
is  right,  stand  with  him  while  he  is  right,  and  part  with  him  when 
he  goes  wrong." 

LETTER  FROM  JUSTICE  DANIEL  F.  COHALAN. 

The  chairman  of  the  committee  presented  the  following  letter 
from  Justice  Daniel  F.  Cohalan.  New  York,  and  directed  that  it  be 
made  a  part  of  the  record : 

Supreme  Court, 
Chambers  Street, 
New  York,  December  11,  191$. 
Dear  Mr.  Flood  :  I  am  sorry  that  because  of  illness  it  will  not  be  possible  for 
me  to  appear  before  your  committee  to-morrow  to  advocate  the  adoption  of  the 
Gallagher  resolution  in  favor  of  the  application  of  the  doctrine  of  self-determi- 
nation to  Ireland.    I  know  of  no  duty  which  a  citizen  owes  to  his  country  at 
the  present  hour  transcending  the  importance  of  contributing  in  every  possible 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


81 


way  to  the  makin?  of  a  just  and  permanent  peace  to  the  end  that  we  may  put 
a  stop  to  wars  and  that  the  world  may  never  again  have  to  endure  such  agony 
and  suffering  as  it  has  just  undergone. 

Whether  such  a  thing  is  possible  is  questioned  by  many  thoughtful  students 
of  history,  but  at  least  no  effort  should  be  spared  by  those  who  speak  with  the 
voice  of  authority  at  the  peace  conference  to  end  the  old  quarrels  which  have 
been  vexing  mankind  and  to  make  a  real  peace  and  not  simply  a  patchwork  of 
selfish  interests  such  as  was  made  by  the  Congress  of  Vienna.  No  greater 
service  could  be  done  to  the  general  cause  of  humanity  than  to  end  the  age- 
long quarrel  between  Ireland  and  England,  because  its  effects  are  not  local  or 
even  national,  but  have  spread  all  over  the  world  and  have  lasted  not  for  years 
hut  for  generations  and  for  centuries. 

There  is  no  country  with  which  America  has  closer  or  more  intimate  ties  of 
blood  and  sympathy  than  Ireland,  and  no  race  which  has  contributed  more  in 
war  and  peace  to  our  service  and  development.  Ireland  has  done  far  more  even 
than  France  for  the  cause  of  American  liberty  and  American  growth,  and  we 
have  just  shown  in  the  case  of  France  rhat  we  are  a  grateful  people  and  seek 
rather  than  avoid  the  payment  of  any  debt  of  gratitude  which  we  owe. 

Moreover,  the  statesman  who  settles  the  Irish  question — and  no  settlement 
which  does  not  meet  the  view  of  the  majority  of  the  people  of  Ireland  will  be 
a  real  settlement — will  have  done  more  for  England  than  her  greatest  statesman 
has  been  able  to  do.  England  has  tried  every  means  of  settling  the  question 
except  the  real  one  of  justice,  and  has  failed  absolutely  and  completely,  as 
Lloyd-George  now  confesses. 

Such  talk  as  that  of  Winston  Churchill  to-day  about  Irishmen  failing  to  agree 
is  futile  and  beside  the  point.  There  is  no  country  in  the  world  in  which  there 
is  unanimity  on  political  or  economic  questions,  and  there  is  more  political 
agreement  in  Ireland  among  the  great  majority  of  the  people  than  there  is 
either  in  America  or  England. 

England  has  made  many  promises  during  this  war,  in  her  hours  of  difficulty, 
about  her  wishes  to  bring  freedom  to  the  small  nations  and  to  oppressed  peo- 
ples. It  will  not  become  her  and  will  not  in  the  long  run  serve  her  real  inter- 
ests for  her  to  repudiate  them  now  that,  with  the  help  of  America — and  that 
was  concededly  essential — she  has  won  the  war. 

The  elections  in  Ireland  on  Saturday  next  will  undoubtedly  show  that  even 
with  a  great  army  of  occupation  in  possession  England  can  not  coerce  the  will 
of  the  people  of  Ireland.  They  have  fought  the  fight  for  freedom  for  centuries, 
and  will  undoubtedly  continue  it  until  they  attain  their  entire  freedom. 

Let  us,  now  that  it  is  within  our  power  to  do  so,  insist  upon  having  the  Presi- 
dent's doctrine  of  self-determination  apply  to  the  case  of  Ireland  as  well  as  to 
the  cases  of  all  the  other  suffering  peoples  of  Europe,  and  the  result  will  be  a 
just  and  durable  peace — one  that  will  benefit  mankind,  help  England  as  no 
other  act  will,  and  further  ennoble  the  name  of  America  among  the  benefactors 
of  humanity  and  the  moral  leader  of  the  world. 
Sincerely  yours, 

Daniel  F.  Cohalax.  Justice. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  JOHN  GRAHAM,  OF  CLEVELAND,  OHIO. 

Mr.  Graham.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee.  I 
am  here  representing  the  Mayo  Men's  Association  and  other  Irish 
organizations  of  the  city  of  Cleveland.  Ohio :  also  the  Irish- American 
Republican  League  of  Cuyahoga  County.  Ohio.  The  gentleman  op- 
posing our  cause  here.  Prof.  George  L.  Fox.  who  says  he  represents 
himself  but  who.  I  think,  is  representing  England,  says  the  Irish 
in  America  are  pro-German.  This  I  take  as  an  insult  to  the  good 
Irish-Americans  who  gave  their  all — money  and  men — to  help  Uncle 
Sam  to  crush  tyranny  and.  as  our  good  President  Wilson  said,  "to 
make  this  world  a  safe  place  to  live  in.?'  Xow.  then,  gentlemen.  I 
am  also  here  representing  300  Irishmen  who  came  over  from  Ireland 
rather  than  fight  for  England  after  England  refused  them  the 
measure  of  home  rule  she  had  promised  them.    And  this  is  what  I 


97017—19  6 


82 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


am  doubly  proud  to  toll  you:  That  I- assisted  in  drafting  a  letter  to 
our  President  and  Secretary  of  War  on  behalf  of  these  300  young 
Irishmen,  who  offered  their  services  to  Uncle  Sam  on  the  condition 
that  they  be  made  American  citizens.  The  privilege  was  granted 
through  our  President  and  your  honorable  Congress,  and  to-day  the 
300  are  in  the  American  Army  and  fought  for  the  freedom  of  small 
nations,  1  reland  included.    Has  Prof.  Fox  done  as  much  for  America  ? 

Mr.  Gallagher.  I  have  some  resolutions  which  I  would  like  to  go 
into  the  record. 

The  Chairman.  Let  them  go  in. 

Mr.  Gallagher  (reading) : 

Mr.  Chairman  :  No1  wishing  to  expend  time  in  urg  ng  arguments  which  have 
been  ably  proposed  already,  permit  us  simply  to  state  that  a  resolution  similar 
in  scope  to  the  one  here  under  discussion  will  be  presented  next  Sunday  even- 
ing, December  15,  at  a  mass  meeting  in  Pittsburgh.  The  mayor  and  ex-mayor 
and  members  of  the  city  council  are  to  be  present,  and  some  of  them  will  speak 
in  favor  of  the  resolution. 

We  are  authorized,  in  the  unavoidable  absence  of  the  delegate  representing 
the  labor  organizations  of  Pittsburgh  and  western  Pennsylvania,  to  state  that 
similar  resolutions  have  been  passed  by  their  general  committee  as  well  as 
various  local  divisions. 

Patrick  F.  Fitzgerald, 
Representing  United  Irish  Societies  of  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

Patrick  Cronin, 
Representing  Duquesne  University  of  Pittsburgh. 

STATEMENT  OF  WILLIAM  J.  CARY,  A  MEMBER  OF  CONGRESS 

FROM  WISCONSIN. 

Mr.  Gary.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  am  glad  to  voice  my  earnest  approval 
of  these  resolutions  and  to  express  the  sincere  hope  that  the  committee 
may  report  them  favorably.  I  have  introduced  similar  resolutions  at 
former  sessions  of  Congress,  but  am  only  too  pleased  to  support  my 
colleague,  Mr.  Gallagher,  in  any  movement  that  shall  win  for  Ire- 
land the  right  to  be  considered  at  the  peace  table. 

In  the  name  of  democracy,  in  the  name  of  humanity,  in  the  name 
of  America,  as  well  as  in  the  name  of  Ireland,  let  us  give  to  the  peo- 
ple of  Ireland  that  inalienable  right  of  self-determination;  that 
God-given  privilege  of  self-government  which  has  been  the  guiding 
and  sustaining  ideal  of  the  American  people  from  the  day  the  first 
shot  for  liberty  was  fired  at  Lexington  down  to  the  last  gallant  bat- 
tle of  the  boys  in  France  for  the  cause  of  human  freedom. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV.  JOHN  F.  FENLON,  D.  D.,  PRESIDENT  OF 
DIVINITY  COLLEGE,  CATHOLIC  UNIVERSITY,  WASHINGTON, 
D.  C. 

I  have  been  requested  by  the  Irish  societies  of  Montana  and  by 
men  of  Irish  blood  in  that  State  to  speak  for  them  before  this  com- 
mittee on  behalf  of  Mr.  Gallagher's  resolution.  These  men  are  citi- 
zens of  the  United  States  and  their  sons  and  brothers  form  a  very 
large  proportion  of  Montana's  quota  in  our  fighting  forces.  Their 
views  on  the  Irish  question  are  shared  by  nearly  all  their  fellow 
citizens.  One  evidence  of  this,  familiar  to  the  gentlemen  of  this  com- 
mittee, is  the  resolution  introduced  into  Congress  by  the  Montana 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


8$ 


Representative.  Miss  Rankin,  which  is  to  the  same  effect  as  Mr. 
Gallagher "s.  Miss  Rankin's  resolution.  I  believe,  voices  the  senti- 
ment of  all  Montana. 

The  first  point  I  would  make,  gentlemen,  is  that  Congress  may 
with  propriety  pass  this  resolution.  The  principle  of  it  is  simply 
the  foundation  of  just  government  in  America,  and,  according  to 
our  American  ideas,  of  all  just  government;  namely,  that  govern- 
ments derive  their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed. 
It  is  a  principle  that  no  loyal  American  can  deny  with  any  con- 
sistency. That  the  principle  ought  to  be  applied  to  Ireland,  as  a 
distinct  nation  capable  of  self-government,  is  a  propositon  which 
no  American  can  fairly  controvert  on  grounds  of  logic  or  facts. 
Assuming  this  for  the  moment  as  true.  Ave  realize  that  the  only  ques- 
tion that  can  be  in  the  minds  of  this  committee  is :  Can  it  with  pro- 
priety recommend  this  resolution  to  the  House  and  can  the  House 
of  Representatives  with  propriety  pass  it  (  The  only  objections,  I 
suppose,  are  that  it  might  be  considered  a  matter  of  delicacy  regard- 
ing our  associate  in  the  war.  Great  Britain,  and  that  it  might  em- 
barrass our  delegates  at  the  peace  congress.  It  is  undoubtedly  a 
matter  of  delicacy,  but  when  the  rights  of  a  nation  are  at  stake, 
delicacy  must  yield  to  the  prime  consideration,  which  is  justice.  A 
false  delicacy  should  not  hinder  America  from  speaking  for  justice 
to  Ireland,  merely  because  that  justice  must  come  from  our  associate 
in  war.  If  Prussia  had  been  the  master  and  oppressor,  we  should 
not  hesitate  to  demand  justice  for  Ireland:  why  should  we  hesitate- 
because  it.  is  England?  Are  the  powers  that  fought  for  justice — 
and  won — expected  henceforth  to  be  less  just  than  those  that  fought 
against  it — and  lost?  Can  not  England  be  expected  to  do  justice 
voluntarily,  as  Germany  and  Austria  both  have  to  do  it  under  force  ? 
England  has  declared  repeatedly  that  she  is  fighting  for  the  rights  of 
small  nations.  Let  us  take  her  at  her  word  and  declare  the  satisfac- 
tion and  joy  with  which  all  America  will  see  her  recognize  Ireland's 
right  to  self-determination.  All  true  democrats  in  England,  and 
they  are  millions,  will  approve  our  resolution. 

Furthermore,  gentlemen,  millions  of  our  citizens  feel  very  strongly 
that  America  has  the  duty  of  speaking  for  Ireland  at  the  peace  con- 
ference. It  is  the  cause  of  justice  to  a  whole,  people,  and  who  will 
speak  for  Ireland  if  we  do  not?  Why  should  the  national  aspira- 
tions of  Ireland  alone  be  ignored  at  the  peace  conference?  So  pre- 
posterous and  so  unjust  and  so  discriminatory  would  be  the  ignoring 
of  Ireland's  cause  that  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  President  Wil- 
son will  neglect  to  speak  for  it  and  to  fight  for  it.  The  American 
Congress  can  not,  in  justice  to  itself,  keep  silent.  It  is  impossible  to 
be  neutral  in  such  a  matter.  If  you  are  not  for  the  cause  of  Ireland, 
you  are  against  it :  for  to  refuse  to  act  is  to  acquiesce  in  the  continu- 
ance of  the  injustice  to  Ireland.  The  honor  of  ourselves  and  of  the 
allies  is  strictly  involved  in  the  just  settlement  of  this  question.  To 
ignore  it.  gentlemen,  is  to  make  a  mockery  of  the  allied  cause.  We 
at  least  must  do  our  part,  not  in  a  merely  formal  manner  but  with  all 
strength,  out  of  an  intense  love  for  justice.  Then  our  honor  will  be 
unsullied,  and  if  we  fail,  the  shame  will  rest  on  England. 

Some  may  think  it  imprudent  to  pass  this  resolution.  They  may 
fear  that  it  will  do  more  harm  than  good.   Ireland  and  the  friends 


84 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


of  Ireland  are  willing  to  run  the  risk.  These  timid  men  underesti- 
mate the  influence  of  American  opinion.  We  are  not  sanguine  of 
converting  Balfour,  Bonar  Law.  and  Carson,  bul  the  influence  of 
American  opinion,  proclaimed  by  the  American  Congress,  will  un- 
questionably strengthen  democratic  opinion  in  Great  Britain.  A 
declaration  like  this,  breathing  America's  sincerity,  courage,  and  love 
of  justice,  will  encourage  all  liberty-loving  and  fair-minded  English- 
men, and  their  number  is  legion. 

1  have  been  taking  for  granted,  gentlemen,  that  the  justice  of  Ire- 
land's cause  is  evident.  What  proof  can  it  need  for  any  mind  imbued 
with  American  principles?  Ireland  is  a  distinct  nation,  distinct  in 
race,  history,  tradition,  mental  gifts,  temperament,  geographical 
position — in  everything  that  goes  to  make  a  nation.  She  demands, 
with  every  nation  that  has  the  spirit  of  free  men,  the  right  to  be 
herself  and  to  govern  herself  and  to  shape  her  own  destinies.  The 
English  experiment  has  lasted  for  centuries  and  has  been  a  tragic 
failure  and  a  shame.  It  is  folly  to  continue  the  experiment  longer, 
and  a  crime  as  well.  It  is  Ireland's  turn  now.  But  let  not  America 
make  the  same  mistake  which  even  some  of  the  best  Englishmen  have 
made,  of  thinking  that  economic  prosperity  will  satisfy  the  Irish 
people.  Ireland  demands  now  the  right  to  live  her  own  life  apart 
from  England  and  to  develop  her  own  soul,  whether  or  not  some  tie 
still  binds  her  to  the  British  Empire,  We  are  ourselves  partly  re- 
sponsible for  this,  for  we  have  preached  Sinn  Fein  to  the  whole 
world,  and  fanned  the  flame  of  Irish  Sinn  Fein.  President  Wilson's 
principles,  so  luminously  and  forcibly  expounded,  are  Sinn. Fein,  pure 
and  adulterated.  Ireland  believes  in  the  sincerity  of  President  Wil- 
son and  of  America.  To  fail  her  would  be  treason  to  the  cause  of 
justice  and  liberty. 

The  only  objection  to  Ireland's  right  that  is  worth  a  moment's 
thought  is  the  Ulster  difficulty.  Two  things  I  wish  to  say.  First, 
that  a  small  section  of  Ireland  can  not  be  allowed  forever  to  thwart 
the  will  of  the  great  majority  of  Irishmen.  Xo  country  can  be 
governed  on  the  principle  of  requiring  unanimity.  When  Lloyd 
George  declares  Ulster  will  never  be  coerced,  he  abandons  the  prin- 
ciple of  majority  rule  and  deliberately  encourages  Ulster,  or  rather 
one  part  of  Ulster,  in  her  recalcitrant  attitude.  The  recalcitrant  part 
of  Ulster  will  yield  and  make  the  best  of  it  when  it  knows  it  has  to. 

The  other  word  I  would  say  in  regard  to  Ulster  concerns  the 
proposal  of  some  Ulstermen  to  allow  secession  of  a  portion  of  Ulster. 
It  is  enough  to  quote  the  chairman  of  the  Irish  convention.  Sir 
Horace  Plunkett,  who  says  the  time  has  gone  by  ';  when  any  other 
section  of  the  Irish  people  would  accept  the  partition  of  their  coun- 
try even  as  a  temporary  expedient."  Ireland  will  not  abandon  her 
ideal  of  one  nation,  free  and  undivided,  in  which  all  Irishmen,  with- 
out distinction  of  creed  and  on  a  footing  of  equality,  unite  in  the? 
service  of  Ireland. 

The  fear  of  religious  intolerance  from  a  dominant  Catholic  ma- 
jority is  hardly  more  than  a  specter  conjured  up  by  politicians.  It 
is  believed  in  only  by  the  ignorant  and  the  fanatical.  Many  of 
Ireland's  best  loved  leaders  have  been  Protestants,  and  Irish  Cath- 
olics could  never  be  so  base  as  to  inflict  any  injustice  upon  the 
brethren  of  these  men.    If  you  will  inquire  into  the  matter  you  will 


THE  IRISH  QUESTIOX. 


85 


discover  that  no  people  knows  better  how  to  discriminate  between 
religion  and  politics  than  the  Catholic  people  of  Ireland.  They 
showed  in  the  Irish  convention,  and  on  every  occasion,  that  they  are 
willing  to  give  all  possible  guaranties  to  insure  the  religious  freedom 
and  equality  of  Irish  Protestants.  Through  centuries  of  bitter 
persecution,  Irish  Catholics  have  learned  the  value  of  religious  free- 
dom and  they  hold  the  crime  of  religious  persecution  in  deep  ab- 
horrence. The  fear  of  it  is  not  seriously  entertained  by  any  states- 
man of  the  British  Isles. 

There  is  another  and  a  very  different  point  of  view,  gentlemen, 
which  I  beg  to  put  before  you.  A  just  settlement  of  the  Irish  ques- 
tion is  necessary  for  right  and  cordial  relations  in  the  future  between 
England  and  the  United  States.  There  is  no  use  in  blinking  the  fact 
that  there  is  a  great  amount  of  unfriendly  feeling  toward  England 
among  our  countrymen.  This  is  by  no  means  confined  to  men  of 
Irish  and  German  descent.  It  is  quite  as  keen  among  men  of  English 
descent.  There  is  nothing  more  desirable,  however,  in  international 
relations  than  a  warm  and  firm  friendship  between  the  two  branches 
of  English-speaking  people;  and  nothing  would  be  more  disastrous 
than  antagonism  between  these  two  nations.  On  their  continued 
good  relations  depends  in  great  measure  the  future  peace  of  the 
world  with  all  the  blessings  to  humanity  which  it  will  bring.  Xow. 
it  is  the  part  of  American  statesmanship  to  look  far  ahead  and  to 
remove  anything  that  might  endanger  cordial  relations  between  Eng- 
land and  America.  This  is  especially  so  as  there  is  bound  to  be  in- 
tense commercial  rivalry  between  these  two  great  powers.  Hitherto, 
in  recent  times,  the  rivals  was  chiefly  between  England  and  Ger- 
many; now,  and  for  many  decades  to  come,  this  rivalry  will  be 
between  England  and' America.  We  have  built  a  vast  fleet  of  mer- 
chant marine  which  we  intend  to  expand  year  by  year.  Responsible 
leaders  have  declared  also  for  the  policy  of  a  large  navy  to  defend 
our  merchant  marine  and  our  long  coast  line.  This  is  a  prospect  that 
England  can  not  view  with  entire  equanimity ;  and  on  our  part  it  is 
commonly  felt  that  we  have  no  power  to  fear  except  the  power  of 
the  British  Navy.  This  is  bound  to  create  a  delicate  situation.  It  is 
no  chimerical  fear  and  it  may  one  day  lead  us  to  the  verge  of  war.  It 
is  our  duty,  therefore,  to  promote  such  a  feeling  among  our  people 
as  will  render  them  friendly  toward  England  and  remove  as  far  as 
possible  the  danger  of  such  a  disastrous  war. 

Xow  if  England  fails  to  do  justice  to  Ireland  and  exhibits  at  the 
peace  congress  the  disposition  to  domineer  and  to  grab  which  has  too 
often  characterized  her,  there  is  no  doubt  whatever  that  feeling  against 
her  in  this  country  will  become  very  bitter  and  intense.  She  can 
soften  all  this  if  she  acts  with  a  sense  of  justice  and  with  some  mag- 
nanimity. This  is  what  is  desired  by  the  best  element  of  England, 
which  is  very  large,  and  though  it  is  not  dominant  now,  the  future 
belongs  to  it.  Our  duty  is  to  help  it  along,  to  encourage  it. 

It  is  well  to  remember  that  America  can  no  longer  say  to  her 
children  that  they  have  no  right  to  make  a  European  question  a 
matter  of  domestic  politics.  If  Americans  have  sent  their  sons  and 
brothers  to  shed  their  blood  for  the  freedom  of  European  nations, 
they  will  claim  the  right  to  speak  for  that  freedom.  They  will 
demand  that  American  statesmen  support  the  just  and  impartial 


86 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


application  of  the  principle  of  self-determination  to  European  na- 
tions. Men  of  Irish  race  Who  volunteered  so  freely  to  fight  in  this 
cause  are  not  the  men  to  keep  quiet  if  justice  is  denied  to  the  Euro- 
pean nation  in  which  they  are  most  interested.  The  Irish  question, 
if  unsettled,  will  surely  become  a  burning  question  of  American 
politics,  and  it  is  not  beyond  probability  that  parties  may  stand 
or  fall  by  their  fidelity  to  the  just  application  of  this  principle  to 
Ireland. 

At  the  same  time  we  must  recognize  that  the  injection  of  European 
issues  into  American  politics  is  very  undesirable.  They  should  all 
be  eliminated.  But  the  way  to  eliminate  them  is  to  settle  the  griev- 
ances that  keep  them  alive.  Then,  undistracted  by  such  foreign  issues, 
all  Americans  will  bend  all  their  efforts  to  make  themselves  one 
homogeneous  people,  united  for  the  welfare  of  our  common  country. 

The  Chairman.  Some  members  of  the  committee  would  like  to 
hear  from  Dr.  McCartan. 

STATEMENT  OF  DR.  PATRICK  McCARTAN,  OF  COUNTY  TYRONE, 
ULSTER,  MEMBER  OF  PARLIAMENT,  KINGS  COUNTY1,  IRISH 
ENVOY. 

Dr.  McCartan.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee. 
I  could  go  into  great  detail  in  telling  what  Ireland  has  done  for  the 
allied  cause,  but  our  demand  for  independence  is  not  based  on  any- 
thing we  have  done  or  refused  to  do.  We  are  asking  for  justice 
and  nothing  more.  We  are  asking  for  nothing  that  is  not  our  own. 
We  are  asking  for  no  favors  from  England. 

In  the  clays  of  Wolfe  Tone,  when  he  approached  the  French  Gov- 
ernment for  aid  in  securing  Irish  independence,  that  Government 
suggested  Ireland  would  get  Jamaica  as  indemnity.  Ireland  asks 
no  indemnity.  She  merely  asks  England  to  get  out  of  Ireland  and 
leave  it  to  the  Irish. 

A  great  deal  has  been  said  about  Protestants  and  Catholics  in 
Ulster.  That  is  one  of  the  false  pleas  that  England  advances  for 
remaining  in  Ireland. 

We  know  no  Catholic  and  no  Protestant  in  Ireland,  just  as  we 
do  not  know  them  in  the  United  States.  There  is  no  bigotry  in 
Ireland,  such  as  is  stated  by  British  propagandists  and  described 
by  English  agents. 

I  am  an  Ulster  man  and  I  know  Ulster.  I  was  born  and  lived  in 
jone  of  the  Ulster  counties  that  was  to  be  excluded  from  the  juris- 
diction of  Ireland,  but  that  same  county  was  this  year  put  under 
martial  law  because  of  its  strong  national  feeling. 

When  the  Ulster  volunteers  were  arming  I  helped  them,  because 
I  knew  the  arms  would  not  be  used  against  us. 

When  I  helped  the  Irish  volunteers  to  arm  I  knew  that  those  arms 
would  not  be  turned  against  their  fellow  countrymen. 

When,  for  seven  weeks  in  1916,  I  was  in  hiding  from  the  British 
agents  because  of  my  part  in  the  Easter  revolution,  it  was  a  Prot- 
estant family  in  Ulster  that  sheltered  me. 

As  Miss  Hughes  has  pointed  out  to  you.  our  flag  represents  a  union 
of  all  the  people  of  Ireland.  It  was  designed  by  the  Protestant 
leader,  Wolfe  Tone.  With  reference  to  Wolfe  Tone  I  would  make 
this  further  statement,  which  no  Irish  Catholic  will  question  and 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


87 


which  I  will  ask  the  Catholic  priests  here  to  verify,  that  there  is  not, 
in  the  calendar  of  saints,  any  names  dearer  to  the  hearts  of  the  Irish 
Catholic  people  than  the  names  of  the  Irish  Protestant  saints  and 
martyrs,  TTolfe  Tone,  Robert  Emmet,  Fitzgerald,  and  the  rest. 

Self-determination,  in  the  form  of  a  plebiscite,  in  which  the  adult 
manhood  and  womanhood  of  Ireland  would  vote,  would  mean  leav- 
ing to  the  Irish  people  themselves  the  decision  as  to  the  form  and 
character  of  the  government  they  want  to  live  under.  That,  in  my 
opinion,  would  carry  out  the  American  ideal  of  government  and 
would  be  in  accord  with  the  letter  and  spirit  of  President  Wilson's 
various  declarations  as  to  America's  object  in  the  war. 

Those  declarations  were  at  least  tacitly  accepted  by  the  allied  gov- 
ernments and  were  hailed  in  England,  both  in  the  speeches  of  re- 
sponsible ministers  and  articles  in  the  leading  newspapers,  as  the 
principles  for  which  the  war  was  being  fought. 

There  was  not  a  word  of  dissent,  in  England  or  in  America,  from 
the  principle  of  self-determination  until  the  war  was  over,  until 
the  decisive  victory,  which  could  not  have  been  won  without  Ameri- 
can help,  arriving  in  the  nick  of  time,  had  turned  the  tide.  Coining 
after  the  war  has  been  won,  the  objections  at  both  sides  of  the  Atlan- 
tic would  place  the  United  States  in  a  false  position  in  which,  we 
are  convinced,  the  American  people  will  not  consent  to  have  their 
Government  placed. 

So  long  as  Ireland  remains  under  the  heel  of  England — and  that 
is  an  exact  description  of  the  present  position — she  will  remain  an 
international  problem  and  a  menace  to  the  world's  peace.  The  whole 
civilized  world,  therefore,  is  concerned  in  seeing  the  Irish  question 
permanently  settled,  and  no  country  in  the  world  is  more  intimately 
concerned  in  its  settlement  than  is  the  United  States. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  DIARMUID  LYNCH,  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Lynch.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen.  I  appear  not  only  as  an 
American  citizen  and  national  secretary  of  the  Friends  of  Irish  Free- 
dom, a  federation  of  societies  throughout  the  various  States  of  the 
Union,  having  in  their  ranks  citizens  descended  from  many  races,  as 
well  as  those  of  Irish  blood,  but  also  as  one  of  the  men  returned  un- 
opposed iast  week  on  the  Sinn  Fein  or  Irish  Bepublic  platform  in 
Ireland. 

It  is  well  that  America  should  understand  the  real  present-day 
Irish  situation.  And  I  speak  of  it  as  of  my  own  personal  knowledge, 
having  fought  in  the  Irish  revolution  of  1916,  for  which  I  was  sen- 
tenced to  be  shot  by  the  British  Government.  This  sentence  was 
commuted  to  10  years'  penal  servitude,  and  I  have  had  personal  ex- 
perience in  British  convict  prisons. 

Incontestable  facts  have  been  placed  before  you  concerning  the  bad 
rule  of  England  in  Ireland,  but  what  Ireland  most  objects  to  is 
foreign  rule. 

Ireland  has  her  back  to  the  wall  and  looks  the  whole  world  square 
in  the  face.  She  will  accept  no  measure  of  devolution  from  the 
British  Parliament,  no  matter  how  designated.  She  will  be  satisfied 
only  with  a  settlement  secured  in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  her 
own  people — expressed  through  a  plebescite  of  her  entire  adult  popu- 
lation— without  any  restriction  whatsoever. 


88 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  Chairman.  Does  that  include  women? 

Mr.  Lynch.  Yes,  sir. 

The  Chairman.  Of  what  age? 

Mr.  Lynch.  Over  21, 1  should  say. 

Mr.  Rogers.  Would  you  say  that  the  vote  of  the  men  alone  would, 
he  satisfactory? 

Mr.  Lynch.  No:  the  Sinn  Fein  party  in  Ireland  is  committed  to 
the  policy  that  women  are  entitled  to  equal  rights  with  men  in  the 
government  of  Ireland. 

The  case  of  Ireland  Wflte  drawn  up  for  presentation  to  the  peace 
conference  by  Irish  leaders  most  competent  to  write  and  present  it; 
but.  gentlemen,  each  and  every  one  of  these  leaders  is  to-day  im- 
prisoned in  England.  These  men  and  women,  leaders  of  the  Irish 
people,  and  hundreds  of  their  principal  supporters,  are  held  in  cus- 
tody of  England,  without  charges  legally  preferred  against  them, 
and  are  denied  trial.  Lord  Wimborne,  lord  lieutenant  of  Ireland  at 
the  time  when  the  alleged  acts  for  which  they  are  imprisoned  are  said 
to  have  been  committed,  stated  in  the  British  Parliament  that  he,  the 
he.'.d  of  the  British  Government  in  Ireland,  had  no  evidence  to  sus- 
tain a  charge. 

Ireland  is  shut  off  from  the  world  and  prohibited  by  the  civil, 
naval,  and  military  power  of  England  from  sending  her  representa- 
tives direct  to  Versailles,  there  to  present  her  case  to  the  peace  con- 
ference and  to  endeavor  to  secure  the  recognition  of  her  independence. 

Notwithstanding  all  that  Ireland  has  suffered  at  the  hands  of 
England,  the  suspension  of  the  exercise  of  her  sovereign  will,  which 
she  has  never  surrendered,  the  domination  of  her  people  by  military 
and  naval  force,  the  burdens  of  overtaxation,  the  tragic  wiping  out 
of  her  popluation,  the  crushing  of  her  industries,  the  suppression  of 
her  merchant  marine,  the  campaign  of  calumny  to  which  she  has 
been  subjected,  the  falsification  of  her  history,  her  ideals  and  her 
aspirations — notwithstanding  all  this,  Ireland  asks  only  that  her 
wrongs  shall  cease  here  and  now,  that  right  be  substituted  for  might, 
and  that  she  be  allowed  to  work  out  her  own  national  destiny,  "  free 
as  the  Great  God  made  her."  Gentlemen,  in  view  of  the  arguments 
advanced  in  Ireland's  behalf,  and  relying  on  your  historical  knowl- 
edge of  Ireland's  national  rights  and  on  the  spirit  of  genuine  Ameri- 
can justice,  which  I  am  sure  animates  you,  I  am  happy  to  feel  that 
this  resolution  introduced  by  Mr.  Gallagher  will  be  reported  favor- 
ably to  Congress  and  that  Congress  will  stand  by  the  application  of 
the  principles  enunciated  by  President  Wilson  and  the  fathers  of  our 
country,  and  secure  the  fulfilment  of  Ireland's  national  aspirations. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  Did  I  understand  you  to  say  that  you  had  been 
elected  a  member  of  Parliament? 

Mr.  Lynch.  I  have  not  been  in  Ireland  since  last  May  but  under- 
stand that,  in  my  absence,  I  was  nominated,  and  that  there  were  no 
opposing  nominations. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  Are  you  an  American  citizen? 

Mr.  Lynch.  I  am  an  American  citizen. 

Mr.  Goodwin.  Irish  citizenship  is  not  a  prerequisite  to  election  to 
Parliament? 

Mr.  Lynch.  In  the  present  position  of  Ireland  no  such  question 
arises. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


89 


The  policy  of  the  Sinn  Fein  party  is  that  none  of  its  members  shall 
sit  in  the  British  Parliament  or  take  any  oath  of  allegiance  to  tlie 
British  Crown.  The  Sinn  Fein  party  is  pledged  to  "  deny  the  right 
and  oppose  the  will  of  the  British  Parliament  and  the  British  Crown, 
or  any  other  foreign  Government,  to  legislate  for  Ireland." 

Mr.  Cooper.  Will  you  please  give  us  a  definition  of  Sinn  Fein  ? 

Mr.  Lynck.  I  am  glad  to  do  so,  as  it  is  a  term  widely  misunder- 
stood in  America.  Sinn  Fein  simply  means  "  we  ourselves  " — a 
synonym  for  self-reliance.  Every  good  American,  as  such,  is  a 
thorough  supporter  of  the  Sinn  Fein  principle. 

Mr.  Sabath.  I  would  like  to  ask  the  gentleman  a  question.  He 
being  elected  to  the  new  Parliament  without  any  opposition,  with  21 
others,  I  take  it  for  granted  that  he  is  in  position  to  knoAV  what  form 
of  Government  they  will  have  there  if  self-determination  is  granted, 
and  whether  the  Sinn  Fein  party  and  people  of  Ireland  believe  in 
personal  and  religious  freedom? 

Mr.  Lynch.  The  platform  of  the  Sinn  Fein  party  is  for  an  Irish 
Republic,  and,  in  the  proclamation  of  the  Irish  Republic  on  Easter 
Monday,  1916,  the  fullest  measure  of  religious  freedom  was  guar- 
anteed to  every  person  in  Ireland.  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
the  whole  machinery  at  the  coming  election  is  in  the  hands  of  the 
British  Government,  that  they  will  have  control  of  the  ballots  from 
the  14th  of  December  to  the  28th  of  December,  I  believe  that  the 
people  will  declare  in  favor  of  an  Irish  Republic. 

Mr.  Cooper.  As  we  all  know,  Great  Britain  has  no  written  con- 
stitution— Parliament  is  supreme.  This  Republic  has  a  written 
constitution — the  organic  law  of  the  Republic — subject  to  amend- 
ment, but  the  amendment  of  which  is  difficult.  It  has  what  amounts 
to  a  bill  of  rights,  guaranteeing  personal  and  political  liberty.  Will 
that  form  of  government  which  you  think  will  be  installed  in  free 
Ireland  have  a  written  constitution? 

Mr.  Lynch.  Most  assuredly.  I  am  confident  that  the  Irish  Parlia- 
ment would  at  the  earliest  moment  possible  draft  and  adopt  a  written 
constitution  and  include  in  it  the  fullest  guaranties  for  personal  and 
religious  liberty. 

Mr.  Tagtje.  In  what  way  do  the  Irish  people  desire  to  express  their 
will  on  self-determination? 

Mr.  Lynch.  Under  the  present  election  conditions  it  is  not  pos- 
sible for  the  Irish  people  to  fully  show  where  they  stand.  The 
leaders  of  the  Sinn  Fein  Party  are  imprisoned  in  England,  as 
already  stated,  and  this  letter,  which  I  desire  inserted  in  the  record, 
will  explain  other  conditions.  The  letter  is  as  follows : 

Dublin,  November  20,  1918. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "Irish  independent,"  Dublin. 

Sir  :  I  desire  to  call  public  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  Government  already 
has  arrested,  without  charge  and  in  succession,  three  Sinn  Fein  Directors  of 
Elections — 

(1)  Mr.  Sean  Milroy,  in  Cavan,  on  May  17; 

(2)  Mr.  Daniel  MacCartliy,  in  Dublin,  in  September;  and 

(3)  Mr.  Robert  O'Brennan  at  these  offices  to-day. 

Each  arrest  has  naturally  caused  some  disorganization,  but  the  cause  of 
Irish  Independence  will  not  be  stayed  or  broken  by  such  tyranny.  Men  have 
been,  and  will  be,  found  who  will  fill  the  vacant  places. 

It  may.  however,  be  of  interest  to  Irish  voters  and  to  the  world  outside  Ire- 
land to  point  out  that,  in  addition  to  tbose  assaults  on  the  machinery  by  which 


90 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Sinn  Fein  endeavors  to  secure  Self-Determination  at  the  coining  General  Elec- 
tion, the  Government  now  detains  in  jail : 

(1)  The  President  of  Sinn  Fein. 

(2)  One  of  the  two  Vice-Presidents. 

(3)  The  two  Treasurers. 

(4)  The  two  Secretaries. 

(.">)  All  hiii  one  or  two  of  the  members  of  the  late  Standing  Committee,  ex- 
cept those  for  whom  warrants  are  issued,  but  not  yet  executed. 

<<i)  And  if  our  candidates  are  elected  at  the  coming  General  Election,  thirty- 
four  constituencies  will  be  represented  by  men  in  jail,  six  by  men  evading 
arrest,  four  by  men  in  the  United  States  of  America. 

(7)  In  addition,  hundreds  of  -workers,  local  election  directors,  agents,  or- 
ganizers, etc.,  are  detained,  some  without  trial,  and  some  on  long  sentences 
for  "crimes"  which  even  the  English  Government  has  only  recently  invented. 

(Signed)  James  O'Mara. 

Sinn  Fein  Director  of  Elections,  Pro  Ton. 

Mr.  Tague.  But,  assuming  that  self-determination  is  granted 
them,  what  would  be  the  procedure? 

Mr.  Lynch.  There  should  be  a  full  register  made  of  all  the  adult 
voters  of  Ireland  and  the  voters  then  given  liberty — without  any 
restrictions  imposed  by  England — to  choose  the  exact  form  of  gov- 
ernment they  desire  to  live  under. 

The  Chairman.  A  representative  doesn't  necessarily  represent 
the  section  he  comes  from  ?  He  may  come  from  any  section  ?  You 
may  have  all  of  them  from  the  north  of  Ireland  or  all  of  them  from 
the  south  of  Ireland? 

Mr.  Lynch.  That  is  true.  A  man  may  be  nominated  for  a  con- 
stituency, irrespective  of  his  residence,  but  he  must  be  elected  by  the 
voters  of  the  constituency  which  he  is  to  represent. 

Mr.  Cooper.  Let  me  say  that  in  this  country  it  isn't  required  that 
a  Member  of  the  House  of  Representatives  shall  be  a  resident  of  the 
district  in  which  he  is  elected,  but  he  must  come  from  the  State  from 
which  he  is  elected. 

Mr.  Colum.  You  have  asked,  Mr.  Chairman,  can  a  person  from 
any  point  of  Ireland  represent  any  given  place  in  Ireland.  The  case 
of  Sir  Edward  Carson,  who  was  the  leader  of  the  Ulster  party,  is 
in  point.  He  is  a  South-of-Ireland  man,  born  in  Cork,  and  prac- 
tices law  in  England.  He  is  not  a  member  for  an  Ulster  constit- 
uency at  all.  He  is  one  of  the  members  for  Dublin  University. 
Dublin  University  has  the  privilege  of  returning  two  members  of 
Parliament.  The  word  "election"  is  a  misnomer  there,  because 
Dublin  University  is  a  close  corporation.  It  is  a  mere  matter  of 
nomination,  and  Sir  Edward  Carson  is  not,  strictly  speaking,  a 
member  for  an  Irish  constituency  at  all. 

The  Chairman.  Does  he  reside  in  Ulster  ? 

Mr.  Coltjm.  No;  he  resides  in  England. 

The  Chairman.  Did  he  ever  reside  in  Ulster? 

Mr.  Colum.  Never. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  The  next  speaker  will  be  Miss  Jeannette  Rankin, 
Member  of  Congress  from  Montana. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JEANNETTE  RANKIN,  A  MEMBER  OF  CON- 
GRESS FROM  MONTANA. 

Miss  Rankin.  I  introduced  a  resolution  last  January  asking  that 
the  House  of  Representatives  pass  a  resolution  saying  that  this  Gov- 
ernment recognize  the  right  of  Ireland  to  political  independence,  and 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


91 


that  we  count  Ireland  among  those  countries  for  whose  freedom  and 
democracy  we  are  fighting.  I  have  brought  that  resolution  up  to 
date  by  adding  that  we  ask  our  representatives  to  present  this  resolu- 
tion. I  do  not  ask  that  my  resolution  be  passed  instead  of  Mr.  Gal- 
lagher's, but  I  merely  wish  to  say  that  I  still  stand  by  that  resolu- 
tion; that  I  feel  the*  people  of  America  are  the  people  who  under- 
stand the  feelings  of  the  people  in  Ireland  for  their  struggle  for  lib- 
erty and  democracy,  because  we  have  had  very  much  the  same 
struggle ;  and  I  simply  feel  that  the  women  realize  what  this  struggle 
means  because  of  the  struggle  that  they  have  gone  through  for  lib- 
erty and  democracy,  and  that  we  should  help  those  who  need  our 
help.  We  realize  what  help  meant  to  us  when  we  were  going  through 
our'  struggle. 

I  have  some  correspondence  here  that  I  would  like  to  present  to 
the  committee,  some  telegrams  and  letters,  asking  the  committee  to 
pass  this  resolution.  Here  are- some  petitions  from  organizations  and 
men  and  women  over  the  country,  and  these  other  documents  are 
merely  letters  saying  that  they  are  pleased  that  the  resolution  is  before 
the  committee. 

I  do  not  ask  the  committee  to  print  these  last,  but  to  take  them 
under  consideration. 

I  have  also  a  collection  of  the  utterances  of  the  President  on  the 
question  of  self-determination  of  small  countries.  It  was  after  many 
of  these  utterances  had  been  made  that  I  introduced  my  resolution 
before,  and  I  would  like  those  to  be  printed  with  my  remarks.  I 
thank  you. 

Public  Utterances  Made  by  President  Wilson  Relative  to  Self-determ ina- 

tion  of  Small  Nations. 

extracts  from  address  before  congress,  january  s,  1018. 
[Congressional  Record,  Jan.  8,  1918,  p.  708.] 

*  *  *  What  we  demand  in  this  war  *  *  *  is  that  the  world  be  made 
*  *  *  safe  for  every  peace-loving  nation  which,  like  our  own,  wishes  to  live 
its  own  life,  determine  its  own  institutions,  be  assured  of  justice  and  fair  deal- 
ing by  the  other  peoples  of  the  world  as  against  force  and  selfish  aggression. 

*  *    *    The  program  of  the  world's  peace    *    *    *    is  this : 
******* 

VII.  Belgium,  the  whole  world  will  agree,  must  be  evacuated  and  restored, 
without  any  attempt  to  limit  the  sovereignty  which  she  enjoys  in  common  with 
all  other  free  nations.    *    *  * 

XI.  *  *  *•  International  guaranties  of  the  political  and  economic  independ- 
ence and  territorial  integrity  of  the  several  Balkan  States  should  be  entered 
into. 

XIII.  An  independent  Polish  State  should  be  erected  which  should  include 
the  territories  inhabited  by  indisputably  Polish  populations,  which  should  be 
assured  a  free  and  secure  access  to  the  sea,  and  whose  political  and  economic 
independence  and  territorial  integrity  should  be  guaranteed  by  international 
covenant. 

XIV.  A  general  association  of  nations  must  be  formed  under  specific  cove- 
nants for  the  purpose  of  affording  mutual  guaranties  of  political  independence 
and  territorial  integrity  to  great  and  small  States  alike. 

******* 

*  *  *  An  evident  principle  runs  through  the  whole  program  I  have  out- 
lined. It  is  the  principle  of  justice  to  all  peoples  and  nationalities,  and  their 
right  to  live  on  equal  terms  of  liberty  and  safety  with  one  another,  whether 
they  be  strong  or  weak.    *    *  * 


92 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ADDRESS  BEFOBE  CONGRESS  APR.  3,  1917. 
[The  Washington  Post,  Apr.  3,  1917.] 

•  *  *  yve  are  o-iart,  now  that  we  see  the  facts  with  no  veil  of  false  pretense 
about  tliein,  to  fight  thus  *  *  *  for  the  rights  of  nations,  great  and  small, 
and  the  privilege  of  men  everywhere  to  choose  their  way  of  life  and  of  obedi- 
ence. P>ut  the  right  is  more  precious  than  peace,  and  we  shall  fight  for  the 
tilings  which  we  have  always  carried  near  our  hearts — for  democracy,  for  the 
right  of  those  who  submit  to  authority  to  have  a  voice  in  their  own  govern- 
ments, for  the  rights  and  liberty  of  small  nations,  for  a  universal  dominion 
of  right  by  such  a  concert  of  free"  peoples  as  shall  bring  peace  and  safety  to  all 
nations  and  make  the  world  itself  at  last  free.    *    *  * 

EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  AT  ARLINGTON,  VA.,  MAY  30,  1916. 
[The  Washington  Post,  May  31,  1916.] 

*  *  *  I  said  *  *  *  that  one  of  the  principles  which  America  held  dear 
was  that  small  and  weak  States  had  as  much  right  to  their  sovereignty  and  in- 
dependence as  large  and  strong  States  *  *  *  because  strength  and  weakness 
have  nothing  to  do  with  her  principles.    *    *  * 

EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  IN  MUSIC  HALL,  CINCINNATI,  OHIO,  OCT.  2G,  191(5. 

[Cincinnati  Inquirer,  Oct.  27,  1916.] 

We  are  a  great  Nation,  a  powerful  Nation:  we  could  crush  some  other 
nations,  if  we  choose ;  but  our  heart  goes  out  to  these  helpless  people.  *  *  * 
America  does  not  believe  in  the  rights  of  small  nations  merely  because  they 
are  small  *  *  *  but  we  believe  in  them  because  when  we  think  of  the  suffer- 
ings of  man  kind  we  forget  where  political  boundaries  lie  and  say,  "These 
people  are  of  the  flesh  and  blood  x>f  mankind,  and  America  is  made  up  out  of 
the  peoples  of  the  world."  What  a  fine  future  of  distinction  and  glory  is  open 
for  a  people  who  by  instinctive  sympathy  can  interpret  and  stand  for  the  rights 
of  man  everywhere. 

EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  BEFORE  CONGRESS,  FEB.   11,  1918. 

[Official  Bulletin.  Feb.  11,  1918,  p.  2.] 

This  war  had  its  roots  in  the  disregard  of  the  rights  of  small  nations  and  of 
nationalities  which  lacked  the  union  and  the  force  to  make  good  their  claim  to 
determine  their  own  allegiance  and  their  own  forms  of  political  life. 

EXTRACTS  FROM  NOTE  TO  BELLIGERENTS  SUGGESTING  PEACE  NEGOTIATIONS,  DECEMBER 

IS,  1916. 

[State  Papers  and  Addresses,  p.  346.] 

Each  side  desires  to  make  the  rights  and  privileges  of  weak  peoples  and  small 
States  as  secure  against  aggression  or  denial  in  the  future  as  the  rights  and 
privileges  of  the  great  and  powerful  States  now  at  war. 

In  the  measures  to  be  taken  to  secure  the  future  peace  of  the  world  the  people 
and  Government  of  the  United  States  are  as  vitally  and  as  directly  interested  as 
the  Governments  now  at  war.  Their  interest,  moreover,  in  the  means  to  be 
adopted  to  relieve  the  smaller  and  weaker  peoples  of  the  world  of  the  peril  of 
wrong  and  violence  is  as  quick  and  ardent  as  that  of  any  other  people  or  gov- 
ernment. They  stand  ready,  and  even  eager,  to  cooperate  in  the  accomplish- 
ment of  these  ends,  when  the  war  is  over,  with  every  influence  and  resource  at 
their  command. 

EXTRACTS  FROM  ADDRESS  TO  THE  SENATE,  JANUARY  22,  1917. 

IS.  Doc.  685,  64th  Cong.,  2d  sess.] 

The  equality  of  nations,  upon  which  peace  must  be  founded  if  it  is  to  last, 
must  be  an  equality  of  rights;  the  guaranties  exchanged  must  neither  recognize 
nor  imply  a  difference  between  big  nations  and  small,  between  those  that  are 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


93 


powerful  and  those  that  are  weak.  Right  must  be  based  upon  the  common 
strength,  not  upon  the  individual  strength,  of  the  nations  upon  whose  concert 
peace  will  depend. 

I  am  proposing,  as  it  were,  that  the  nations  should  with  one  accord  adopt  the 
doctrine  of  President  Monroe  as  the  doctrine  of  the  world — that  no  nation 
should  seek  to  extend  its  policy  over  any  other  nation  or  people,  but  that  every 
people  should  be  left  free  to  determine  its  own  policy,  its  own  way  of  develop- 
ment, unhindered,  unthreatened,  unafraid,  the  little  along  with  the  great  and 
powerful. 

EXTRACTS  FROM  MESSAGE  TO  HIS  HOLINESS  BENEDICTUS  XV,  POPE,  THROUGH  SECRE- 
TARY OF  STATE  ROBERT  LANSING,  AUGUST  27,  1917. 

[Official  Bulletin,  Aug.  29,  1917,  p.  4.] 

They  believe  that  peace  should  rest  upon  the  rights  of  people,  not  the  rights 
of  the  government — the  rights  of  people  great  or  small,  weak  or  powerful — their 
equal  right  to  freedom  and  security  and  self-government  and  to  a  participation 
upon  fair  terms  in  the  economic  opportunities  of  the  world.    *    *  * 

We  believe  that  the  intolerable  wrongs  done  in  this  war  by  the  furious  and 
"brutal  power  of  the  Imperial  German  Government  ought  to  be  repaired,  but  not 
at  the  expense  of  the  sovereignty  of  any  people — rather  a  vindication  of  the 
sovereignty  both  of  those  that  are  weak  and  of  those  that  are  strong. 

EXTRACT  FROM  OFFICIAL  BULLETIN,  DECEMBER  3,  1917,  PAGE  1,  IN  MESSAGE  TO  THE 

KING  OF  ROUMANIA. 

[Official  Bulletin,  Dec.  3,  1917,  p.  1.1 

*  *  *  In  any  final  negotiations  for  peace  it  will  use  its  constant  efforts  to 
see  to  it  that  the  integrity  of  Roumania  as  a  free  and  independent  nation  is 
adequately  safeguarded. 

EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  BEFORE  CONGRESS,  DECEMBER  4,  1917. 

[Official  Bulletin,  Dec.  4,  1917,  p.  2.] 

The  peace  we  make  must  remedy  that  wrong.  It  must  deliver  the  once  fair 
lands  and  happy  peoples  of  Belgium  and  northern  France  from  the  Prussian 
•conquest  and  the  Prussian  menace,  but  it  must  also  deliver  the  peoples  of 
Austria-Hungary,  the  peoples  of  the  Balkans,  and  the  peoples  of  Turkey,  alike 
in  Europe  and  in  Asia,  from  the  impudent  and  alien  dominion  of  the  Prussian 
military  and  commercial  autocracy. 

EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  BEFORE  CONGRESS,  FEBRUARY  11,  1918. 
[Official  Bulletin,  Feb.  11,  1918,  p.  3.] 

Peoples  are  not  to  be  handed  about  from  one  sovereignty  to  another  by  an 
international  conference  or  an  understanding  between  rivals  and  antagonists. 
National  aspirations  must  be  respected;  peoples  may  now  be  dominated  and 
governed  only  by  their  own  consent.  "  Self-determination "  is  not  a  mere 
phrase.    *    *  * 

EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  BEFORE  NEW  CITIZENS'  ALLIANCE.  CHICAGO,  OCTOBER  19,  1916. 
[New  York  Times,  Oct.  20,  1916.] 
Let  us  stand  by  the  little  nations  that  need  to  be  stood  by.    *    *  * 

EXTRACT   FROM   ADDRESS   BEFORE   LEAGUE   TO   ENFORCE   PEACE,    WASHINGTON,    D.  C, 

MAY  27,  1916. 

[The  Washington  Post,  May  28,  1916.] 

We  believe  these  fundamental  things:  *  *  *  Second,  that  the  small 
States  of  the  world  have  a  right  to  enjoy  the  same  respect  for  their  sover- 
eignty and    *    *    *    territorial  integrity.    *    *  * 


94 


THE  IRISU  QUESTION. 


STATEMENT  OF  MR.  THOMAS  J.  McNAMARA,  OF  ST.  LOUIS,  MO. 

Mr.  Mc  Xamaka.  I  represent  the  Building  and  Trade  Council  of 
St.  Louis.  Mo.  It  is  a  labor  organization  and  not  an  Irish  organi- 
zation. It  represents  21  labor  organizations  and  every  nationality 
on  the  globe;  has  a  membership  of  approximately  12,000  people, 
and  on  December  9  the  following  resolution  was  adopted.  I  wish 
that  to  go  into  the  record. 

St.  Louis,  Mo.,  December  9,  1018. 

Chairman  of  the  Committee,  , 

House  of  Representatives,  Washington,  l>.  ('. 

Sir:  At  a  meeting  of  the  representatives  of  this  council  held  this  date  the 
question  of  applying  the  principle  of  self-determination  to  Ireland,  when  the 
negotiations  for  peace  are  undertaken,  was  freely  discussed,  with  the  result 
that  the  following  resolution  was  adopted: 

"  Be  it  resolved,  That  it  he  the  sense  of  this  meeting  that  the  principle  of 
self-determination,  as  enunciated  by  President  Wilson  in  his  speech  setting 
forth  the  14  points  as  a  basis  for  negotiating  peace,  be  applied  to  Ireland  as 
well  as  to  other  peoples  of  Europe." 

I  h  ive  been  directed  to  transmit  this  information  to  your  honorable  body 
with  a  request  that  you  kindly  give  it  the  consideration  it  merits. 

Hoping  the  deliberations  of  your  committee  will  be  of  lasting,  benefit  to  all 
mankind,  we  remain,  honorable  sir, 
Yours,  very  respectfully, 

[seal.]  Building  Trades  Council  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.. 

Per  Maurice  J.  Cassidy,  Secretary. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JOHN  W.  RAINEY.  A  MEMBER  OF  CONGRESS 

FROM  ILLINOIS. 

Mr.  Rainey.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen,  I  have  listened  with 
considerable  pleasure  to  the  suggestions  offered  by  the  representa- 
tives from  all  parts  of  the  United  States  that  Ireland  have  the  right 
of  self-determination,  and  I  think  the  unanimity  of  feeling  that  is 
rampant  here  amongst  the  representatives  assembled  refute  abso- 
lutely the  oft-repeated  suggestion  that  Irishmen  can  never  agree 
amongst  themselves.  I  have  been  honored  with  membership  in  the 
Sixty-fifth  Congress,  known  as  the  war  Congress.  This  the  greatest 
Congress  in  our  history,  as  honored  as  I  have  been  by  membership, 
my  cup  of  happiness  will  be  filled  to  overflowing  if  this  committee 
reports  this  resolution  favorably  to  the  House  and  there  is  expressed 
the  belief  of  the  American  Congress  that  Ireland  should  take  her 
place  among  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

I  was  not  a  Member  of  this  body  when  the  Hon.  Thomas  Galla- 
gher, Member  of  Congress,  presented  his  first  resolution.  I  had  in 
mind  presentation  of  a  resolution  similar  to  the  one  offered  by  the 
distinguished  Member  from  Chicago,  but  felt  that  offering  it  would 
be  superfluous,  and.  not  looking  for  any  particular  or  personal  dis- 
tinction, felt  that  there  is  honor  enough  for  all  and  that  I  would 
contribute  my  mite  by  making  it  possible  for  this  representative 
body  to  have  an  opportunity  to  present  their  claims  before  this  com- 
mittee. And  therefore  on  Thursday,  December  5,  when  I  should 
have  been  in  Chicago  with  my  wife,  who  on  that  day  Avas  blessed 
with  a  new  baby  girl,  I  remained  here  at  the  Capital  and  accom- 
panied Mr.  Gallagher  and  came  before  this  committee  and  urged 
upon  them  our  desire  to  give  the  representatives  of  the  Irish  people 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


95 


of  the  United  States  an  opportunity  to  present  their  case  before 
this  body.  To-day  as  we  look  through  the  vista  of  years  we  are 
thrilled  -with  joy.  we  feel  the  warmth,  we  see  the  glow  of  the  sun- 
shine of  Ireland's  optimism.  The  sons  and  daughters  of  Ireland 
have  never  lost  heart  or  hope,  and  to-day  few  nations,  if  any,  in  the 
world  rank  as  high  as  Ireland.  Measure  the  home  of  our  fathers 
with  the  nations  of  the  world  in  literature,  the  arts,  the  sciences 
and  answer  me,  is  not  my  claim  sound  in  fact? 

The  attainment  of  Ireland  and  its  people  in  the  highest  things  of 
life  is  unsurpassed  by  any  people  or  nation  of  the  world. 

In  the  arts,  in  science  or  warfare  Ireland  takes  her  place  amongst 
the  first  nations  of  the  earth.  From  Clontarf  through  the  ages  of 
bitter  warfare  that  have  been  the  cross  of  Erin,  beyond  the  seas  in  the 
Indies,  in  the  Orient,  in  the  Transvaal,  through  the  American  Rebel- 
lion, in  our  recent  world  war.  under  conflicts  of  almost  every  nation, 
you  will  find  the  Irish  soldier.  And  show  me  one  not  valorous  and 
not  true,  not  faithful  to  his  cause.  The  history  of  our  Republic  is 
replete  with  stories  of  Irish  valor.  On  land  and  sea  the  part  played 
in  the  upbuilding  and  the  preservation  of  our  free  institutions  thrill 
us  with  just  pride  in  our  people. 

There  is  a  spirit  of  liberty  ever  worn  in  the  Irish  breast  and  the 
spirit  of  scorn  for  the  oppressor  which  nothing  short  of  absolute  in- 
dependence will  ever  satisfy.  And  nothing  will  induce  them  to  re- 
nounce the  ennobling  desire  for  freedom  which  has  preserved  Ireland 
a  nation  in  darker  hours  and  darker  times  than  these.  Ireland  wants 
and  must  have  freedom.  In  the  whole  range  of  human  history  there 
is  nothing  more  honorable  than  the  struggle  of  the  Irish  people  in 
the  last  150  years.  We  know  they  were  conquered,  crushed,  and 
humiliated.  Young  Ireland  now  strikes  the  higher  note  of  national 
independence.  "  To  the  honor  and  glory  of  the  Irish  people  and 
their  dauntless  champions  in  the  cause  of  God  and  human  right." 
Ireland  has  taught  the  world  that  trusting  in  God,  patriotism  and 
justice  will  triumph.  And  only  a  few  days  ago,  when  the  great  Euro- 
pean conflict  was  on,  and  the  cannons  roared  and  shells  burst,  and 
fields  were  overturned  and  crops  destroyed,  and  monuments  of  his- 
tory and  epics  of  architecture  and  art  were  demolished,  and  lives 
were  snuffed  out  b}T  millions,  bodies  shattered  to  the  four  winds,  and 
widows  wailed  and  orphans  cried,  and  mothers  trudged  the  weary 
way  of  poverty,  sorrow,  and  hunger,  and  young  girls  collapsed  by  the 
roadside  at  the  horrors  of  war  and  the  bereavements  of  life,  as  all 
these  outrages  against  peace,  civilization,  and  religion  were  perpe- 
trated, you  found  hundreds  of  thousands  of  Irish  at  the  front  fighting 
the  cause  of  humanity. 

It  is  true  in  this  great  land  of  America  that  when  we  entered  this 
great  struggle  the  sons  of  Ireland  stood  fast  by  the  colors  of  this 
land,  particularly  during  the  days  of  peril  and  national  trials.  As 
one  man  they  stood  for  America  and  the  principles  upon  which  it 
was  founded,  and  for  which  it  stands.  As  one  man,  without  spirit 
of  rivalry  either  political  or  racial,  they  stood  by  the  President  and 
the  Government.  And  as  one  man  they  repudiated  each  and  every 
citizen  in  private  or  public  life  or  even  in  the  councils  of  the  Xation 
who  dared  endanger  or  expose  to  harm  this  great  land  that  we  call 
our  own. 


96 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


This  is  our  country,  and  this  is  our  home;  this  is  our  shelter,  and 
this  is  our  refilge  from  oppression  and  denial  of  rights.  Here  we 
have  round  freedom  and  a  better  mode  of  life.  Here  we  have  found 
opportunities  to  mould  our  individual  careers  according  to  the  power 
given  us.  Here  we  have  found  a  place  where  we  may  worship  our 
Creator  according  to  our  conscience  and  our  hearts,  and  here  we  ask 
from  this  honorable  committee  a  favorable  report  to  the  House  that 
the  blessings  we  have  enjoyed  in  these  groat  United  States  shall  now 
be  transmitted  to  our  people  across  the  sea,  keeping  in  mind  the 
suggestions  offered  by  our  great  President. 

Ireland  asks  the  right  to  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness. 
They  simply  wish  that  restored  which  was  taken  from  them.  And 
this  committee,  assembled  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  believe  that 
we  have  sent  across  the  high  seas  the  Chief  Executive  of  these  great 
United  States,  who  is  thoroughly  imbued  with  the  fact  that  govern- 
ments should  be  established  by  the  consent  of  the  governed. 

The  Son  of  Man  was  sent  at  the  proper  time  to  lead  the  world  to 
light  out  of  darkness;  Moses  was  sent  to  the  Isrealites  to  lead  them 
out  of  the  bondage  of  Egypt  into  the  promised  land;  Constantine 
the  Great  was  sent  to  form  a  Christian  empire  out  of  the  remains  of 
pagan  Rome;  Joan  of  Arc  was  sent  to  France  in  her  hour  of  trials; 
Columbus  opened  the  gates  of  the  western  world  when  Europe  had 
become  too  small ;  Washington  and  Lincoln  arose  out  of  the  Ameri- 
can multitudes,  the  one  to  found  our  country  and  the  other  to  lead 
when  the  Union  seemed  in  peril.  And  to-day,  when  the  universe  is 
fevered  with  the  lust  of  war,  a  President,  worthy  of  the  name,  has 
arisen  and  is  steering  manfully  the  ship  of  state  through  the  chan- 
nels of  peace. 

May  we  urge  upon  this  committee  that  it  report  back  to  the  House 
the  right  of  Ireland  to  nationhood. 

If  this  is  done  it  will  be  particularly  pleasing  to  us  in  this  swreet 
land  of  America,  in  this  our  beloved  country,  where  Celt  and  Saxon 
come  together  to  form  the  magnificent  race  of  the  future,  that  shall 
be,  we  may  believe,  the  race  that  shall  dominate  the  World  and  hasten 
and  make  speedier  the  coming  of  the  day  foreseen  by  the  poet  and 
prayed  for  by  sage  and  saint;  when  the  whole  human  family  shall 
be  iiterally  one  and  when  Avar  shall  be  no  more  and  cease  amongst 
men ;  when  the  miserable  race  prejudices  shall  be  things  of  the  bar- 
barous past  and  the  wdiole  world  shall  be  composed  of  one  magnifi- 
cent family  of  which  the  various  nations,  if  they  shall  retain  their 
individuality,  shall  be  but  members,  speak  in  one  language  and  be 
largely  assimilated  in  blood  and  religion. 

There  has  been  an  objection  urged  by  some  as  to  the  propriety  of 
this  committee  reporting  favorably  upon  this  resolution  to  the  House. 
Let  me  say  that  there  is  absolutely  no  impropriety  in  this  commit- 
tee's reporting  favorably  to  the  House  of  this  resolution  for  the  self- 
determination  of  Ireland. 

The  President  of  the  United  States  has  pledged  himself  before  this 
Nation  and  before  the  world  in  declaring  war  against  the  central 
powers  that  it  was  the  duty  of  this  Nation  to  enter  the  war  for  the 
salvation  of  the  democracy  of  Europe  and  for  the  bringing  of  the 
fruits  of  democracy  to  all  the  small  nations  of  the  world.  Our  life, 
our  treasure,  the  officers  and  the  parties  of  this  Nation  have  all  sup- 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


97 


ported  the  President  and  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  for  the 
carrying  out  of  this  desire. 

The  war  has  been  won  at  a  tremendous  cost  of  life  and  treasure, 
and  it  iioay  remains  for  us  to  make  good  the  pledge  made  to  those 
who  were  willing  to  make  these  sacrifices  for  the  carrying  on  of  such 
lofty  principles.  And  if  we  do  not  we  certainly  can  not  help  but 
hear  the  voice  of  the  dead  on  Flanders  Field,  at  Chateau-Thierry. 
Argonne  Forest,  and  Belleafr  Wood,  and  when  Gen.  Foch  reviewed 
the  troops  he  said  that  Belleau  Wood  from  now  on  would  be  known 
as  Bois  des  American,  meaning.  Woods  of  America,  saying  to  us 
"  If  ye  break  faith  with  us  Avho  die  we  shall  not  sleep  though  pop- 
pies bloom  on  Flanders  Field.-' 

Therefore  I  lend  my  voice  to  the  petitions  already  put  forth  by 
the  various  representatives  from  throughout  the  country  to  you,  Mr. 
Chairman  and  your  honorable  body  that  in  your  report  of  this  reso- 
lution you  suggest  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  that  our  con- 
ferees in  the  peace  conference  be  instructed  to  demand  for  Ireland 
as  a  small  nation  along  with  the  other  small  nations  the  rght  of 
self-determination  and  the  enjoyment  of  the  privileges  of  a  free 
}>eople. 

I  present,  to  be  spread  on  the  record,  a  letter  from  former  Gov. 
Dunne,  of  Illinois,  and  also  a  letter  from  Justice  William  F.  Dever, 
member  of  the  appellate  court  of  Illinois. 

Dunne,  Mukphy  &  Dunne. 
Attorneys  and  Counseuork. 

Chicago,  December  10.  1918. 

To  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs. 

House  of  Representatives. 

(To  which  has  been  referred  the  resolution  relating  to  the  right  of  Ireland  to 
self-determination  of  government.) 

Gentlemen  :  I  regret  exceedingly  that  pressing  matters  here  in  Chicago 
prevent  me  accompanying  the  committee  from  Chicago  which  will  appear  before 
your  committee  to  urge  a  favorable  report  upon  the  resolution  relating  to  the 
right  of  Ireland  to  self-determination  of  government. 

The  great  war  just  closed  so  triumphantly,  I  believe,  has  settled  the  right  of 
small  nations  to  self-determination  of  government,  as  enunciated  so  eloquently 
and  forcefully  by  our  great  President,  for  all  time. 

This  war  had  its  genesis  in  the  assertion  by  Austria-Hungary  of  the  right  to 
govern  the  people  of  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  without  the  consent  of  those  little 
nations  and  developed  into  a  struggle  between  the  Slavonic  and  Teutonic  races, 
and  finally  culminated  in  the  violent  assertion  by  the  central  powers  of  the 
right  to  overrun  and  destroy  Belgium,  Luxemburg,  and  other  small  nations. 

For  a  time  the  struggle  was  confined  to  Europe,  but  when  the  central  powers 
began  to  trample  upon  the  rights  of  American  citizens  upon  the  high  seas  and 
murdered  American  citizens  ruthlessly  and  remorselessly  the  war  developed 
into  a  struggle  to  preserve  democracy  throughout  the  world  and  rights  of  free 
nations  and  peoples  to  conduct  their  governments  in  accordance  with  the  wishes 
of  these  peoples. 

The  issue  has  now  become  world  wide.  The  farseeing  statesman  in  the 
White  House  has  given  to  the  world  a  declaration  of  national  rights  applicable 
equally  to  great  and  small  nations,  and  has  voiced  the  true  sentiment  of  the 
American  people. 

These  rights  must  be  asserted,  and  will  be  asserted,  in  the  peace  conference 
soon  to  assemble.  Among  the  small  nations  which  should  be  accorded  that  right 
is  Ireland,  who,  for  nearly  800  years,  has  been  struggling  to  assert  that  right 
against  British  domination. 

No  reason  can  be  truthfully  urged  why  the  people  of  Ireland  should  not  be 
accorded  the  right  of  other  small  nations.  Ireland  has  never  invaded  any 
other  country,  nor  sought  to  interfere  with  the  rights  of  any  other  country  to 


97017—19  7 


98 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


determine  their  scheme  of  government.  Famine  and  depopulation  from  nearly 
p.(Khukm)  to  about  4,500,000  during  the  last  7<>  years  has  been  the  result  of 
foreign  domination,  against  which  she  protests.  Her  sons  have  been  scattered 
throughout  the  civilized  world  and  have  attested  their  love  of  liberty  in  every 
land  in  which  they  dwell.  They  fought  for  the  preservation  of  the  Union  in 
this  country  and  for  the  Independence  of  the  South  American  Republics.  Millions 
of  men  of  Irish  blood  in  this  country  have  hailed  with  joy  the  attitude  of  the 
American  Republic  expressed  through  its  President,  and  would  respectfully 
request  that  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  uphold  his  hands  before  the 
peace  conference  by  declaring  that  Ireland,  as  well  as  Belgium,  Luxemburg, 
Bohemia,  Serbia,  Herzegovina,  Bosnia,  and  other  small  nations  shall  be  given 
the  right  to  determine  the  form  of  government  under  which  they  shall  exist 
and  develop. 

Very  respectfully, 

B.  F.  Dunne. 


Chicago,  III..  !)<<■<  niber  10,  1918. 

Hon.  KlCKHAM  SCANLAN, 

Judge  of  the  Circuit  Court.  Cook  County,  III. 

Dear  Judge  Scanean  :  I  regret  very  much,  indeed,  my  inability  to  accompany 
your  committee  to  Washington.  I  intended  to  be  with  you.  as*  you  know,  but 
Circumstances  beyond  me  compel  my  presence  here  on  Thursday  next. 

However,  I  am  convinced  that  your  purpose  in  going  to  Washington  will  be 
fully  realized.  The  present  issue  as  to  Ireland  is  perfectly  simple  and  clear. 
The  announcement  is  made  that  the  peace  conference  to  be  held  in  Paris  will 
definitely  set  at  rest  the  question  of  the  right  of  all  nations,  both  large  and 
small,  to  determine  for  themselves  their  own  form  of  Government.  It  can  not 
be  true  that  the  Irish  people  alone  are  to  be  denied  a  privilege  which  is  to  be 
recognized  as  a  fundamental  right  of  every  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

Poland  is  to  be  permitted  to  govern  herself.  Poland  was  not  a  party  to  the 
war,  except,  like  Ireland,  in  so  far  as  she  was  by  force  compelled  to  submit  to 
the  sovereignty  of  other  nations.  This  is  also  true  of  Armenia  and  the  several 
peoples  who  went  to  make  up  the  Austrian  Empire.  There  is  no  difference  in 
principle  between  the  status  of  these  people  and  that  of  the  Irish.  Such  differ- 
ence as  there  is  is  merely  one  of  degree.  The  injustice  to  and  the  sufferings 
of  Ireland  have  continued  for  centuries  longer  than  those  imposed  upon  many 
of  the  other  peoples  referred  to. 

Twenty-six  counties  of  the  32  in  Ireland  desire  that  Ireland  shall  be  treated 
as  other  peoples  are  to  be  treated  by  the  peace  conference ;  and  this  wish  is 
supported  by  a  large  percentage  of  the  people  of  the  other  G  counties.  Many 
millions  of  American  citizens,  men  and  women  of  Irish  nativity  or  descent,  be- 
lieve, now  that  a  congress  of  nations  is  about  to  provide  for  the  relief  of  the 
oppressed  nations  of  the  earth,  that  it  is  eminently  fitting  that  the  United 
States  Congress  should  announce  that  the  Irish  people,  who  have  given  so 
much  of  their  service  and  blood  to  this  Nation,  should  not  be  excluded  from 
the  right  to  determine  for  themselves  such  kind  and  form  of  government  as 
they  may  see  fit  to  live  under. 
Sincerely,  yours, 

Wliliam  E.  Devek. 

Mi-.  Cooper.  Miss  Hughes  has  handed  me  a  definition  of  the  word 
Sinn  Fein,  which  I  believe  should  go  in  the  record.  "Sinn  Fein 
literally  means, '  We  ourselves ";  in  a  broader  interpretation  it  means, 
k  AAV  ourselves  rely  on  ourselves ; '  i  we  ourselves  will  govern  our- 
selves; '  '  we  ourselves  will  be  free  men,  not  bond  men/  " 

Miss  Hughes.  May  I  add  that  George  Washington  was  the  great- 
est advocate  of  Sinn  Fein  in  all  history. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  JOHN  P.  O'CONNOR. 

Mr.  O'Connor.  Mr.  Chairman  and  honorable  body,  I  represent 
the  Street  (  Jar  Men's  Organization  of  the  city  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  num- 
bering 5,000.  We  have  got  1,450  men  in  the  colors  to-day.  The  first 
man  who  paid  the  great  sacrifice  on  the  fields  of  France  was  an 
Irishman,  born  and  raised  in  Ireland.   The  men  of  my  organization 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


99 


delegated  me  to  come  here  before  your  committee.  They  comprise 
men  of  all  the  nationalities  on  earth,  and  they  are  heart  and  soul 
with  Ireland  in  getting  the  same  justice  as  Poland.  Greece,  and 
Serbia. 

In  line  with  Mr.  O'Sullivan's  statement.  I  was  in  Ireland  15  years 
ago.  and  had  two  brothers  in  Ireland  when  this  war  broke  out.  When 
they  first  passed  home  rule  for  Ireland  and  Kino-  George  signed  it, 
my  brothers  volunteered:  they  went  over  to  the  Dardenelles.  came 
back  wounded,  and  went  a  second  time:  they  were  transferred  to 
Greece,  and  then  to  Macedonia:  were  wounded,  and  transferred  back 
to  France:  and  to-day  they  are  in  a  hospital  in  England.  I  have  a 
brother  that  volunteered  in  Canada  and  served  with  Canadian  troops. 
He  is  in  an  English  hospital  to-day.  I  have  a  brother  that  was  a 
motorman.  and  I  think  it  was  on  the  28th  day  of  April.  1917.  he 
volunteered  in  the  American  Army,  and  to-day  he  is  fighting  in 
France.  This  man  Fox.  talking  about  American  citizens  of  Irish: 
blood  in  this  room  being  pro-German,  has  the  wrong  idea  when  h& 
says  I  am  not  a  good  American  citizen. 

STATEMENT  OF  CONGRESSMAN  PETER  E.  TAGUE. 

Mr.  Tagub.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee.  I  shall 
not  take  up  the  time  of  the  committee  in  making  any  extended  re- 
marks on  this  question,  but  Avish  to  reiterate  all  that  has  been  said 
Mi  favor  of  self-determination  for  Ireland,  I  represent,  in  person, 
in  this  Congress  a  city  having  perhaps  more  people  of  Irish  blood 
than  any  city  in  this  country,  the  city  of  Boston.  I  represent  the 
district  known  as  Bunker  Hill.  That  is  my  home.  Bunker  Hill  is 
made  up  to-day  of  -10.000  people.  Over  37.000  people  of  those  are  of 
Irish  blood.  That  district  to-day  in  the  Army  and  the  Navy  of 
the  United  States  is  represented  by  more  than  4. .500  men.  They  are 
the  sons  of  Irishmen,  and  they  are  >ons  of  the  members  of  the  Ancient; 
Order  of  Hibernians.  We  have  given  as  freely  of  our  boys  in  pro- 
portion, as  great  in  numbers  as  any  district  in  this  land,  and  we 
are  the  children  of  these  Irishmen,  loving  our  own  United  States. 
Knowing  the  history  of  the  country  of  our  fathers,  we  come  before 
your  committee  asking  for  the  passage  of  a. resolution  that  will  give 
self-determination  to  Ireland,  that  she  may  rule  herself  as  we  rule 
ourselves,  and  that  she  may  conie  into  her  own.  that  which  she  has 
fought  for  for  centuries,  and  what  which  she  has  helped  other  nations 
to  secure,  freedom  and  liberty. 

Mr.  Svbvth.  You  are  just  as  sincerely  for  the  determination  of  the 
rights  and  independence  of  all  other  nations,  such  as  Bohemia  and 
Poland,  are  you  not  ? 

Mr.  Taoue.  I  believe  in  the  freedom  of  all  the  peoples  of  all  the 
world. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  CHARLES  POPE  CALDWELL.  MEMBER  OF 
CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Caldwell.  I  did  not  intend  to  say  anything  here,  but  the 
statement  that  I  have  heard,  that  this  is  a  Catholic  meeting,  compels 
me  to  say  a  word. 

I  am  a  Protestant  of  the  fourth  generation.  My  great-grandfather 
was  a  member  of  the  Irish  Volunteers,  a  Protestant.  [Applause.] 


100 


Tin;  ikish  question. 


I i  occurs  to  me  that  the  passage  of  this  resolution  is  going  to  answer 
one  great  question  thai  lias  doubled  many  of  our  people,  and  troubled 
them  particularly  about  the  time  we  were  going  into  the  war.  That 
question:  Did  we  enter  this  war  to  fight  for  England,  or  with  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland  (  If  we  went  in  to  fight  for  England,  the  gentle- 
man from  Connecticut  (Mr.  Fox)  is  right,  but  if  we  went  in  to  light 
with  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  then  we  owe  it  as  a  duty  to  stand 
for  the  great  principle  of  democracy  that  has  been  advocated  by  our 
President  since  the  beginning  of  this  great  trouble,  and  see  to  it  that 
the  people  all  o\cr  the  earth  have  a  right  to  self-determination.  That 
applies  to  Ireland,  as  it  applies  to  the  Kurds,  the  Christians,  the  Jews, 
the  Jugo-Slavs,  the  Czechs,  and  every  other  people  on  the  earth  who 
have  in  their  bosoms  that  thing  that  has  been  taught  by  America, 
that  all  men  are  born  free  and  equal,  and  each  is  entitled  to  life, 
liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness  wherever  he  may  be.  |  Ap- 
plause.] 

REMARKS  OF  HON.  JOHN  J.  DELANEY,  A  REPRESENTATIVE  IN 
CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Delaney.  Mr.  Chairman.  I  am  proud  of  the  opportunity 
afforded  me  at  this  time  to  speak  a  few  words  in  favor  of  this  resolu- 
tion. You  have  already  heard  the  story  of  Ireland  and  her  sons. 
Her  sufferings  have  borne  fruit  in  America  in  the  love  of  liberty  her 
sons  have  brought  from  the  old  land.  Celtic  idealism  has  shone  the 
brighter  for  the  long  night  of  oppression  which  has  enshrouded  Erin 
for  centuries.  But  now  the  answer  to  the  eager  questioning  of  anx- 
ious hearts  to  the  watchmen  on  the  walls.  "What  of  the  night?" 
seems  about  to  be  "  The  morning  cometh."  For  England,  too.  has 
had  her  adversity.  The  deep  significance  of  the  blood  shed  by  Eng- 
land in  the  recent  struggle,  the  titanic  and  terrible  character  of  which 
has  staggered  humanity,  I  will  not  seek  to  determine  here. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  impecunious  condition  of  the  British 
exchequer  is  the  only  real  obstacle  to  a  juster  dealing  with  Ireland 
now.  Yet  I  am  loth  to  hope  that  if  our  peace  commission  will  lend 
their  powerful  support  to  the  movement  England  will  soon  be  ready 
to  do  justice  to  a  nation  and  a  people  long  neglected  and  misused. 

I  believe,  and  I  can  not  help  wish,  that  the  British  Government 
would  shoAv  at  least  rudimentary  common  sense  in  Irish  affairs  and 
not  deliberately  plant  mines  of  discontent  and  resistance  all  over  the 
English-speaking  world.  Everything  has  been  muddled  by  the  Brit- 
ish Government  in  Ireland,  and  I  am  firm  in  the  conviction  that  the 
support  of  the  many  thousands  of  Americans  who  sympathize  with 
the  principles  of  self-government  everywhere — in  Ireland  no  less 
than  in  Poland  or  Bohemia  or  Serbia — has  been  embarrassed  and 
scarcely  less  than  scorned.  For  some  unexplainable  reason  every 
step  in  the  recent  past  taken  by  the  British  Government  toward  con- 
ciliation in  Ireland  was  immediately  taken  back.  I  can  see  no  harm 
whatever  in  America  lending  its  wise  counsel  in  the  hope  that  this 
disturbing  question  may  be  settled  now  once  and  for  all.  I  earnestly 
ask  the  members  of  this  committee  to  report  this  resolution  to  the 
House,  where  I  believe  it  is  sure  to  meet  with  practically  the  unani- 
mous approval  of  Congress. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


101 


STATEMENT  OF  MR.  P.  T.  MORAN,  OF  WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 

Mr.  Moran.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  represent  the  United  Societies  of 
Washington  in  the  winters  and  in  the  summer  I  represent  a  good 
big  district  of  Virginia,  and  I  got  a  good  deal  of  my  inspiration  from 
the  history-making  men  of  Virginia.  It  has  given  me  inspiration  to 
speak  for  the  self-determination  of  the  smaller  nations  of  the  earth. 
I  have  also  been  associated  with  some  of  the  big  business  organiza- 
tions in  this  city.  Having  been  president  of  the  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce of  Washington  for  two  years  I  had  an  opportunity  to  come 
in  contact  with  the  various  business  men  of  the  various  nationalities, 
and  being  one  of  the  "  exiles  of  Erin  "  from  time  to  time  the  question 
of  Ireland  would  come  up,  and  I  must  confess  that  I  have  never 
found  a  man  that  has  said  an  unkind  word  toward  those  who  have 
been  championing  the  Irish  cause  and  favoring  the  independence  of 
Ireland.  I  appreciate  the  fact  that  public  sentiment  Avill  be  the 
guiding  movement  behind  this  proposition  to  get  you  gentlemen 
to  act  favorably  on  this  resolution.  We  hope  this  committee  will 
act  favorably  on  this  resolution,  because  if  you  do  not  there  will  be 
20,000,000  of  American  citizens  of  Irish  blood  in  this  country  who 
will  feel  disappointed  to  think  that  some  of  their  sons  shed  their 
blood  on  the  other  side  fighting  for  democracy,  and  fighting  for  the 
liberation  of  smaller  nations  and  that  Ireland,  the  cradle  land  of 
their  forefathers,  should  be  denied  the  right  of  sef -determination. 

REMARKS  OF  HON.  GEORGE  F.  O'SHAUNESSY,  A  REPRESENTA- 
TIVE IN  CONGRESS  FROM  RHODE  ISLAND. 

Mr.  O'Shaunessy.  No  unbiased  mind  will  challenge  the  statement 
that  Alsace-Lorraine  has  been  a  thorn  in  the  side  of  France  since  the 
Franco-Prussian  War.  One  of  the  underlying  causes  of  the  great 
war  now  happily  ended  was  this  German  war  spoil  taken  from 
France  in  1870.  France  is  to  have  Alsace-Lorraine  restored  to  her, 
and  Germany  will  be  the  better  for  it.  Ill-gotten  goods  never  bring 
luck. 

Why  should  Ireland  not  be  restored  to  her  own  people?  Why 
should  not  the  legislative  crime  of  1800  be  undone?  No  honest  man 
will  attempt  to  defend  the  act  of  union  by  which  Ireland  was  de- 
prived of  her  legislative  independence.  Imperfect  as  the  Irish  Par- 
liament was,  and  corrupt  as  it  was,  it  did  a  great  good  for  Ireland, 
particularly  from  1782  to  1800.  The  law  prohibited  Catholics  from 
membership  therein. 

Lord  Sheffield,  who  wrote  upon  Irish  commerce  in  1785,  said:  "At 
present,  perhaps,  the  improvement  of  Ireland  is  as  rapid  as  any  coun- 
try ever  experienced."  Lord  Clare,  speaking  in  1798  of  the  period 
that  had  elapsed  since  1782,  said :  "  There  is  not  a  nation  in  the  habit- 
able globe  which  has  advanced  in  cultivation  and  commerce,  in  agri- 
culture and  manufactures  with  the  same  rapidity  in  the  same  period." 

Four-fifths  of  the  people  of  Ireland  were  against  the  act  of  union 
with  Great  Britain.  The  act  was  accomplished  through  wholesale 
bribery  and  corruption  of  the  Irish  Parliament  made  up  of  men 
largely  from  rotten  boroughs.  A  referendum  to  the  people  on  the 
question  of  the  union  was  refused. 


102 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Catholic  opposition  was  put  to  sleep  by  a  promise  of  emancipation 
which  did  not  become  a  reality  for  -21)  years  afterwards,  mainly 
through  the  spirited  leadership  of  Daniel  O'Connell. 

If  justice  and  honor  and  right  are  to  be  enthroned  at  the  peace 
table,  how  can  Ireland's  claims  go  unrecognized  %  Is  it  not  the  ac- 
cepted time  for  her  people  to  be  given  the  opportunity  to  decide  their 
lives  for  themselves?  We  in  America  believe  in  majority  rule,  and 
bow  with  graciousness  to  majority  decree.  Why  not  let  the  majority 
in  Ireland  determine  their  political  life?  The  ballot  in  the  hands  of 
every  man  and  woman  in- Ireland  over  21  will  soon  end  an  age-long 
question,  if  those  men  and  women  are  permitted  to  vote  upon  the 
question  of  the  kind  of  government  they  want.  Such  a  verdict  by 
Irish  men  and  women  honestly  recorded  and  enforced  would  bring 
to  England  the  plaudits  of  the  world.  Only  crass,  stupid,  junker 
statesmanship  will  oppose  such  a  solution. 

1  favor  the  Gallagher  resolution,  and  I  know  that  its  passage  by 
this  Congress  will  bring  joy  to  the  hearts  of  every  red-blooded  Amer- 
ican. It  will  be  hailed  with  satisfaction  by  the  great  British  democ- 
racy, which  is  as  urgent  as  its  brethren  in  America  that  justice  be 
d  ne  the  long-suffering  Emerald  Isle. 

Mr.  Rogers*  Mr.  Chairman,  I  would  like  to  propose  an  extension 
in  the  record  al  o  by  printing  the  memorial  ^ent  to  the  prime  minister 
•of  England  in  April,  1917,  signed  by  about  175  Members  of  Con- 
gress. 

I  think  that  action  which  called  for  a  solution  of  the  Irish  ques- 
tion was  in  a  very  large  way  the  forerunner  of  the  hearings  we  have 
been  having  for  the  last  few  day-. 

Mr.  Sabath.  I  think  that  privilege  was  accorded  our  friend,  Mr. 
Gallivan,  of  Massachusetts. 

ADDITIONAL  REMARKS  OF  HON.  JAMES  A.  GALLIVAN.  A  REPRE- 
SENTATIVE IN  CONGRESS  FROM  THE  STATE  OF  MASSACHU- 
SETTS. 

Mr.  Gallivan.  In  connection  with  the  suggestion  of  Congressman 
Rogers,  I  desire  to  submit  at  this  stage  of  the  hearing  a  copy  of  the 
petition  which  I  had  the  pleasure  of  drawing  up  and  cabling  to 
Hon.  Lloyd-George.  May  I  add  that  in  addition  to  the  very  repre- 
sentative number  of  Members  of  Congress  who  signed  the  appeal 
there  were  countless  other  Congressmen  who  spoke  to  me  after  they 
read  the  printed  petition  in  the  Congressional  Record,  and  assured 
r  e  that  they  would  gladly  have  given  their  signatures  for  use  if 
they  had  been  approached. 

The  message  sent  to  Lloyd-George  read  as  follows : 

Washington.  I>.  G.;  April  28.  1917. 
The  Right  Hon.  David  Lloyd-Geobge,  M.  P.. 

London.  Eufflflfld. 

You  ai\'  quoted  as  saying  that  w  the  settlement  of  the  Irish  question  is  essen- 
tial for  the  peace  of  the  world  and  for  a  speedy  victory  in  the  war.*' 

May  we,  Members  of  the  American  Congress,  surest  that  nothing  will  add 
mor«>  to  the  enthusiasm  of  America  in  this  war  than  a  settlement  now  of  the 
Irish  problem. 

We  believe  that  all  Americans  will  he  deeply  stirred  and  their  enthusiastic 
effoit  enlisted  if  the  British  Empire  will  now  settle  this  problem  in  accordance 
with  the  principles  announced  by  President  Wibon  in  his  address  to  Congress 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


103 


asking  it  to  declare  war  on  autocracy  for  the  world-wide  safety  of  democracy 

and  of  small  nationalities. 

Champ  Clark,  of  Missouri.  Speaker  of  the  American  Congress ;  James 
A.  Gal'.ivan.  of  Massachusetts;  John  J.  Fitzgerald,  of  New  York; 
Claude  Kitchin.  of  North  Carolina  ;  John  F.  Carew,  of  New 
York ;  Daniel  J.  Griffin,  of  New  York  ;  William  C.  Adamson,  of 
Georgia  ;  William  A.  Ayres,  of  Kansas  ;  Eugene  Black,  of  Texas ; 
Henry  Bruckner,  of  New  York;  James  F.  Byrnes,  of  South 
Carolina :  Clement  Brumbaugh,  of  Ohio ;  Charles  P.  Caldwell, 
of  New  York ;  Philip  P.  Campbell,  of  Kansas;  William  H.  Carter, 
of  Massachusetts :  Walter  M.  Chandler,  of  New  York ;  Frank 
Clark,  of  Florida  ;  Charles  P.  Coady.  of  Maryland  ;  James  W. 
Collier,  of  Mississippi ;  Peter  E.  Costello,  of  Pennsylvania  ;  Harry 
H.  Dale,  of  New  York  :  Perl  D.  Decker,  of  Missouri ;  S.  Wallace 
Dempsey.  of  New  York ;  Edward  E.  Denison,  of  Illinois ;  A.  G. 
Dewalt.  of  Pennsylvania  :  Peter  J.  Dooling,  of  New  York ;  Dud- 
ley Doolittle.  of  Kansas ;  H.  G.  Dupr£.  of  Louisiana ;  L.  C. 
Dyer,  of  Missouri :  John  J.  Eagan.  of  New  Jersey  ;  Joe  H.  Eagle, 
of  Texas ;  Henry  I.  Emerson,  of  Ohio ;  John  R.  Farr.  of  Penn- 
sylvania ;  Simeon  D.  Fess.  of  Ohio ;  H.  F.  Fisher,  of  Tennessee ; 
Joseph  V.  Flynn.  of  New  York ;  A.  T.  Fuller,  of  Massachusetts ; 
Thomas  Gallagher,  of  Illinois :  Warren  Gard,  of  Ohio ;  M.  M. 
Garland,  of  Pennsylvania:  James  P.  Glynn,  of  Connecticut; 
James  A.  Hainill.  of  New  Jersey;  Rufus  Hardy,  of  Texas; 
Robert  D.  Heaton.  of  Pennsylvania  ;  J.  Thomas  Heflin.  of  Ala- 
bama :  Walter  L.  Hensley.  of  Missouri ;  Benjamin  C.  Hilliard.  of 
Colorado  :  Edward  E.  Holland,  of  Virginia  :  W.  C.  Houston,  of 
Tennessee :  W.  Schley  Howard,  of  Georgia :  Murray  Hulbert. 
of  New  York :  Benjamin  G.  Humphreys,  of  Mississippi ;  William 
L.  Igoe.  of  Missouri ;  Edward  Keating,  of  Colorado :  Walter 
Kehoe.  of  Florida  ;  Ambrose  Kennedy,  of  Rhode  Island  ;  Irvine 
L.  Lenroot,  of  Wisconsin;  J.  Charles  Linthicum,  of  Maryland: 
Meyer  London,  of  New  York :  Augustine  Lonergan,  of  Con- 
necticut;  George  R.  Lunn,  of  New  York;  James  McAndrews.  of 
Illinois  :  Medill  McCormick.  of  Illinois ;  Tom  D.  McKeown,  of 
Oklahoma  ;  Joseph  McLaughlin,  of  Pennsylvania  ;  Jeff  McLemore, 
of  Texas :  Martin  B.  Madden,  of  Illinois ;  James  P.  Maher.  of 
New  York:  Charles  Martin,  of  Illinois;  William  E.  Mason,  of 
Illinois :  Jacob  Meeker,  of  Missouri ;  Frank  W.  Mondell.  of  Wyo- 
ming ;  Andrew  J.  Montague,  of  Virginia ;  John  M.  Morin,  of 
Pennsylvania ;  Patrick  D.  Norton,  of  North  Dakota  ;  George  F. 
O'Shaunessy,  of  Rhode  Island :  Arthur  W.  Overmyer,  of  Ohio : 
Frank  Park,  of  Georgia  ;  James  S.  Parker,  of  New  York ;  Michael 
F.  Phelan.  of  Massachusetts;  Charles  H.  Randall,  of  California; 
Daniel  J.  Riordan.  of  New  York:  William  A.  Rodenberg,  of 
Illinois :  Arthur  B.  Rouse,  of  Kentucky  :  Frederick  W.  Rowe.  of 
New  York  ;  Adolph  Sabath.  of  Illinois;  Thomas  J.  Scully,  of  New 
Jersey  :  Thetus  W.  Sims,  of  Tennessee ;  Charles  B.  Smith,  of  New 
York';  Thomas  F.  Smith,  of  New  York  ;  Homer  P.  Snyder,  of  New 
York  ;  Christopher  D.  Sullivan,  of  New  York ;  Peter  F.  Tague, 
of  Massachusetts:  Charles  B.  Timberlake.  of  Colorado;  George 
H.  Tinkham.  of  Massachusetts:  Carl  C.  Van  Dyke,  of  Minne- 
sota ;  William  S.  Vare.  of  Pennsylvania  :  Joseph  Walsh,  of  Mas- 
sachusetts :  Charles  B.  Ward,  of  New  York ;  Henry  W.  Watson, 
of  Pennsylvania  :  Edwin  Y.  Webb,  of  North  Carolina  ;  William 
W.  Wilson,  of  Illinois ;  William  S.  Greene,  of  Massachusetts : 
Reuben  L.  Haskell,  of  New  York;  F.  H.  LaGuardia,  of  New 
York :  Frank  E.  Doremus,  of  Michigan ;  Fred  A.  Britten,  of 
Illinois ;  G.  W.  Templeton,  of  Pennsylvania ;  Luther  W.  Mott, 
of  New  York ;  Isaac  Bacharach,  of  New  Jersey :  John  R.  K. 
Scott,  of  Pennsylvania  :  Charles  H.  Rowland,  of  Pennsylvania  ; 
Henry  A.  Clark,  of  Pennsylvania  ;  Edgar  R.  Kiess.  of  Pennsyl- 
vania ;  George  P.  Darrow.  of  Pennsylvania :  Aaron  S.  Kreider, 
of  Pennsylvania:  Edwin  E.  Robbins.  of  Pennsylvania;  John  M. 
Rose,  of  Pennsylvania ;  Charles  H.  Sloan,  of  Nebraska  ;  Thomas 
S.  Crago.  of  Pennsylvania ;  Julius  Kalm.  of  California  :•  William 
L.  La  Follette.  of  Washington ;  Charles  A.  Kennedy,  of  Iowa ; 


104 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Ebenezer  I.  Hill,  of  Connecticut;  Benjamin  K.  Focht,  of  Penn- 
sylvania; Charles  C.  Kearns,  of  Ohio;  George  W.  Edmonds,  of 
Pennsylvania  :  John  \Y.  Langley,  of  Kentucky:  Nathan  l>.  Strong, 
of  Pennsylvania;  .1.  Hampton  Monro,  of  Pennsylvania;  John  J. 
Rogers,  of  Massachusetts;  Frederick  W.  Dallinger,  of  Massa- 
chusetts; Calvin  D.  Paige,  of  Massachusetts;  John  it.  Ramsey, 
of  New  Jersey;  Hen  Johnson,  of  Kentucky;  Riley  J.  Wilson,  of 
Louisiana;  Isaac  Siegel,  of  New  York. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV.  WILLIAM  J.  KIRWIN,  BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 

Rev.  Father  Kirwin.  1  will  read  a  telegram  from  Congressman 
Smith,  a  member  of  your  committee.    Here  is  his  telegram: 

Buffalo,  X.  v..  December  tl,  1918* 
Rev.  William  ,T.  Kihwin,  Washington,  />.  G. 

Having  complete  sympathy  with  the  movement  to  allow  Ireland,  ns  well  as 
other  small  Tuitions,  to  determine  her  own  destiny  and  establish  the  government 

which  best  meets  the  needs  and  desires  of  her  own  people,  I  am  naturally 
desirous  of  doing  everything  practicable  and  honorable  to  bring  success  to  Ire- 
land's self-determination  movement.  As  to  the  specific  legislation  before  the 
Committee  r  have  not  had  the  opportunity  to  read  the  resolution  or  study  its 
provisions. 

Chablks  B.  Smith,  m.  C, 

Mr.  Chairman,  all  I  have  to  say  in  this  matter  is  this:  Any  ques- 
tion that  disturbs  the  peace  of  the  civilized  world  assumes  the  status 
of  an  international  question.  The  Irish  question  is  disturbing,  has 
disturbed,  and,  unless  settled,  will  continue  to  disturb  the  peace  of  the 
civilized  world,  and.  therefore,  it  assumes  the  status  of  an  interna- 
tional question.  If  it  is  an  international  question,  it  is  a  question 
on  which  Congress  can  intervene.  The  objection  to  that  is  that  the 
English  say  it  is  a  domestic  question,  but  that  is  a  play  on  words,  be- 
cause questions  which  had  once  been  domestic  questions  have  now 
become  international  questions.  The  Bolshevik  question,  which  was 
once  a  national  question  is  now  an  intenational  question,  and  the 
question  of  the  Dardanelles  and  Bohemia  are  now  international  ques- 
tions. We  hold  that  a  mountain  of  unpleasantness  has  arisen  out  of 
the  national  sphere  into  a  question  that  affects  the  civilized  world — 
and  when  I  say  the  civilized  world,  even  if  we  omit  France,  Switzer- 
land, and  so  on,  and  limit  it  to  England  and  Ireland — it  affects  all 
the  civilized  world,  because  as  it  used  to  be  said  when  France  was 
sick,  Europe  was  sick:  so  we  can  say  to-day  when  Ireland  is  sick, 
Europe  is  sick.  Therefore,  I  offer  that  as  an  idea  for  Congress,  the 
supreme  law-making  body  of  this  country,  having  all  the  power  and 
the  machinery  to  legislate — no  other  body  in  this  country  has  that 
power — and  we  ask  Congress  to  exercise  the  power  with  which  it  is 
endowed. 

STATEMENT  OF  FORMER  CONGRESSMAN  MICHAEL  F.  D0N0H0E, 

OF  PHILADELPHIA. 

Mr.  Doxoi-ioe.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
will  not  detain  you  because  I  know  your  broad  grasp  for  world 
affairs.  I,  too.  would  pay  my  respects  to  the  gentleman  from  Con- 
necticut (Mr.  Fox),  whether  self-constituted  or  paid  or  employed, 
and  it  shows  the  audacity  of  those  self-appointed  men  in  questioning 
the  right  of  our  country  to  instruct  our  delegates  when  it  is  shown 
that  a  commission  appointed  to  go  into  the  question  of  the  financial 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


105 


situation  between  England  and  Ireland,  concluded  that  Ireland  had 
been  robbed  of  vast  sums  of  money  within  the  previous  75  years,  and 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  a  million  men  had  died  of  famine  that  was 
man-made.  He  denies  the  fact  that  American  generals  and  almost 
one-half  of  the  people  that  fought  in  the  Revolutionary  War  in 
America  were  Irish  and  spoke  the  Irish  tongue,  denies  the  services 
of  Jack  Barry,  which  have  never  been  denied  except  by  those  who 
would  falsify  Ireland:  denies  Steven  Moylan,  the  right-hand  man  of 
George  Washington,  and  all  the  other  great  men.  It  is  impossible 
for  so  great  and  learned  a  gentleman  as  our  friend  from  Connecticut 
to  so  distort  the  history  of  the  United  States  as  he  has  attempted 
to  do. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV.  T.  J.  HURTON,  OF  PHILADELPHIA,  PA. 

Rev.  Father  Hurton.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  com- 
mittee, I  represent  133  units  of  25  different  organizations  of  Penn- 
sylvania with  60,000  members.  I  also  represent  a  public  meeting 
at  which  10.000  people  attended  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  and  also 
on  Broad  Street,  Philadelphia,  filling  one  whole  square,  on  Decem- 
ber 10,  1918,  at  which  Senator  Phelan  and  Mr.  Conboy,  the  director 
of  the  draft  in  New  York,  spoke  for  the  self-determination  of  Ire- 
land, and  at  which  150  of  the  most  prominent  Pennsylvanians,  in- 
cluding eight  Catholic  bishops  of  Pennsylvania,  were  vice  presidents, 
and  of  which  the  honorary  chairman  and  one  of  the  vice  presidents 
was  Governor-elect  Sproles  of  Pennsylvania :  and  two  of  the  vice 
presidents  were  Rabbi  Cosgrove  and  Rabbi  Newman.  The  meeting 
was  an  American  one  and  I  desire  to  file  this  document  adopted  by 
the  meeting: 

To  the  Preside  at  and  Congress  of  the  United  states  of  America: 

1.  We.  the  undersigned,  citizens  of  the  United  St;ttes.  differing  in  race, 
religion,  and  domestic  politics,  are  one  in  the  belief  that  "  governments  derive 
their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed."  Tins  hasic  principle  of 
American  liberty  is  nobly  championed  by  our  great  President.  To  win  self- 
deter  mi  n  nation  for  till  peoples,  this  justice-loving  Republic  entered  the  world 
war. 

2.  The  Irish  nation  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  Europe.  Its  contribution  to  civili- 
zation in  the  centuries  of  its  independence  is  highly  esteemed  by  all  who  read 
history. 

Ireland  never  surrendered  her  national  rights.  The  act  of  union,  so  called, 
was  passed  by  a  Parliament  corrupted  by  England,  in  which  less  than  one-fifth 
of  the  people  of  Ireland  were  represented.  Two  years  before  this  "  union,"  in 
1798,  and  three  years  after  it,  under  Robert  Emmet.  Ireland  fought  for  her 
national  independence,  as  she  did  in  every  century  since  the  English  invasion. 

The  net  results  of  British  domination  in  Ireland  are  destruction  of  industries, 
poverty,  and  depopulation. 

In  the  last  70  years  Ireland's  population  has  been  cut  in  half  while  England's 
has  almost  trebled. 

3.  Irishmen  played  a  large  part"  in  freeing  America  from  foreign  rule  and 
in  the  development  of  the  Republic.  In  the  present  conflict  over  half  a  million 
Americans  of  Irish  blood  served  in  our  Army  and  Navy.  It  is  estimated  that 
an  equal  number  of  men,  born  in  Ireland  (most  of  them  exiled  by  bad 
economic  conditions  at  home),  enlisted  throughout  the  world.  From  the  Provost 
Marshal  General's  report  it  appears  that  a  larger  percentage  of  alien  cobelliger- 
ents  of  Irish  than  of  any  other  nationality  waived  exemption  in  the  United 
States.  For  example:  Ireland,  30.4;  England,  22.5.  These  men  offered  their 
lives  for  world  freedom,  confident  that  such  a  freedom  would  include  the  mother- 
land of  their  race.  No  race  now  being  freed  has  done  more  for  world  liberty 
in  this  war  than  the  Irish  race. 


L06 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


4.  At  tins  supreme  moment,  when  the  wrongs  of  centuries  are  being  righted, 

;i  military  despotism  keeps  the  voice  of  Ireland  from  the  ears  of  the,  free 
nations.  Irish  .jails  are  tilled  with  the  best  citizens.  .Many  leaders  of  the  peo- 
ple and  elected  representatives  are  deported  to  England  anal  Imprisoned  with- 
out trial  or  even  legal  accusation. 

.">.  In  the  face  of  these  autoeratic  conditions  a  conference  which  met  in  the 
Mansion  House.  Dublin,  and  had  delegates  from  80  per  cent  of  the  elected 
representatives  Of  Ireland,  unanimously  addressed  President  Wilson,  June  11. 
1918,  and  urged  self-determination  for  Ireland  as  "  a  sovereign  principle  be- 
tween a  nation  that  bas  never  abandoned  her  Independent  rights  and  an  adja- 
cent nation  that  has  persistently  sought  to  strangle  them." 

I  >t'  the  national  councils  of  oppressed  peoples  that  have  appealed  to  our  Presi- 
dent, Done  was  more  clearlj  representative  of  the  will  of  its  nation  than  the 
Mansion  House  conference,  appealing  for  the  Irish  nation.  Our  patriots  could 
muster  no  such  proportion  for  independence  in  177(>.  Democracy  is  majority 
rule.  In  no  nation  is  unanimity  found,  yet  England  maintains  for  her  own  pur- 
poses the  will  of  20  per  cent  as  against  the  will  of  80  per  cent  of  the  Irish 
people. 

d.  England  despite  her  professed  acceptance  of  the  President's  principles, 
has  (by  Parliament  vote  Nov.  5,  1918)  refused  Ireland  self-determination. 

7.  Deeming  this  an  opportune  time,  as  American  arms  are  victorious,  we  con- 
fidently petition  the  President  and  Congress  to  exercise  the  unique  power  for 
justice  of  the  United  States  to  secure  for  Ireland,  equally  with  Finland.  Poland. 
Bohemia,  and  Belgium,  that  self-determination  which  President  Wilson  nas 
demanded  for  all  peoples — the  form  of  government  to  be  decided  by  adult 
suffrage  of  the  people  of  Ireland — and  representation  at  the  peace  conference 
ami  in  the  league  of  nations.  Let  history  record  that  America  secured  for 
Ireland  that  justice  which  the  sons  of  both  nations  freely  bled  to  win  for  all 
peoples. 

America,  to  equal  Ireland's  man  contribution  to  the  war.  would 
have  to  place  11,000.000  men  on  the  fi<>htin<>-  fronts. 

Gentlemen,  I  now  request  the  insertion  in  the  record  of  "Ireland's 
Plea  for  Freedom,"  by  William  J.  M.  A.  Maloney,  M.  D.,  late  captain 
of  the  British  Army:  also  the  Sinn  Fein  platform,  adopted  at  their 
convention,  1917. 

Ireland's  Plea  for  Freedom. 

[William  .7.  M.  A.  Maloney.  M.  D..  late  captain  in  the  British  Army.] 
THE  IRISH   issi  K  IN   ITS  AMERICAN  ASPECT. 

About  150  years  ago  the  American  States,  becoming  increasingly  self- 
conscious;  felt  it  to  be  inconsistent  with  their  rights  longer  to  submit  to  colonial 
bondage.  They  readily  perceived  ;i  community  of  interests  with  Ireland,  the 
oldest  of  England's  dependencies.  Not  that  the  American  States,  3,000  miles 
from  England,  had  ever  experienced  the  weight  of  the  yoke  which  Ireland,  on 
the  threshold  of  England,  endured.  Hut  in  principle  the  problem  confronting 
the  two  dependencies  was  Identical.  "The  question  in  both  countries."  wrote 
Froude  ("English  in  Ireland."  p.  189).  "was  substantially  the  same;  whether 
the  Mother  Country  had  a  right  to  utilize  her  dependencies  for  her  own  interests 
irrespective  of  their  consent."  And  the  all-wise  Franklin,  preparing  for  the 
contest  which  was  to  settle  this  question  for  bis  people,  visited  Ireland  in  1771 
to  emphasize  to  the  Irish  Patriot  party  the  essential  unity  of  American  aims 
with  Irish  interests.  "  I  found  them,"  he  records  ("Franklin's  Works,"  VII, 
pp.  557-558),  "disposed  to  be  friends  of  America  in  which  I  endeavored  t<>  con- 
firm them  with  (he  expectation  that  our  growing  weight  might  in  turn  be  thrown 
into  one  scale  and  by  joining  our  interests  with  theirs  a  more  equitable  treat- 
ment from  this  nation  (England)  might  be  obtained  for  tbemselves  as  well  as 
for  us.*'  Franklin  not  only  sought  through  Ireland  to  weaken  England  in  the 
impending  struggle  against  the  American  States,  he  also  contemplated  an  affilia- 
tion of  Ireland  and  of  Canada  with  the  people  he  represented.  His  diplomatic 
mission  was  followed  up  by  action  on  the  part  of  the  first  general  Congress 
which  met  in  Philadelphia  on  September  4.  1774. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


107 


For  any  subject  of  England  to  aid  America  was,  of  course,  treason  against 
England.  And  the  American  Fathers,  conscious  of  the  consequences  of  this 
crime,  deemed  it  their  duty  to  forbid  the  Island  of  Jamaica  to  incur  the  dangers 
of  aiding  the  Revolution.  "  The  peculiar  situation  of  your  Island."  said  the 
Congressional  Letter  to  the  Jamaican  Assembly,  read  on  July  25,  1775,  "forbids 
your  assistance."  Remoteness  from  England  endowed  Jamaica  with,  at  least, 
relative  safety.  If  wise  discretion  was  advisable  in  Jamaica,  it  might  have 
been  considered  imperative  in  Ireland,  isolated  and  well-nigh  defenseless  at  the 
very  gates  of  England,  and  therefore  in  a  "  peculiar  situation "  to  perforin 
vicarious  expiation  for  all  traitorous  colonists. 

But  no  admonition  to  caution  came  from  Congress  to  moderate  Irish  ardor 
for  the  American  cause.  Instead,  Congress  appointed  a  committee  to  draft  an 
address  M  To  the  People  of  Ireland."  which  was  read  on  July  28.  1773.  and  which 
ran  as  follows : 

M  We  are  desirous  of  the  good  opinion  of  the  virtuous  and  humane.  We  are 
peculiarly  desirous  of  furnishing  you  with  the  true  state  of  our  motives  and 
objects,  the  better  to  enable  you  to  judge  of  our  conduct  with  accuracy  and 
determine  the  merits  of  the  controversy  with  impartiality  and  precision.  Your 
Parliament  has  done  us  no  wrong.  You  had  ever  been  friendly  to  the  rights 
of  mankind  :  and  we  acknowledge  with  pleasure  and  gratitude  that  your  nation 
lias  produced  patriots  who  have  nobly  distinguished  themselves  in  the  cause 
of  humanity  and  of  America." 

The  judgment  sought  by  Congress  from  Ireland  was  so  unanimous  in  favor 
of  America  that  ti  e  disastrous  effect  of  the  Revolution  on  Irish  trade  did  not 
prevent  "the  mass  of  the  people,  both  Catholic  and  Protestant,  from  wishing 
success  to  t1  o  patriotic  colonists"  (Mitchel).  M  Ireland  was  with  America  to 
i\  man."  declared  Pitt,  the  "  Great  Commoner"  (Bancroft's  "History  of  The 
Tinted  States,"  vol.  VII.  p.  11)4).  The  people  of  Dublin  presented  their  thanks, 
and  the  '*  Merchants'  Guild  "  gave  an  address  of  honor  to  the  Karl  of  Effingham 
who  "  refused  to  draw  the  sword  against  the  lives  and  liberties  of  his  fellow 
subjects"  in  America.  In  Belfast  meetings  were  held  and  money  was  raise  I  to 
support  the  American  cause.  And  Grattan  boldly  referred  to  America  as  "  the 
only  hope  of  Ireland  and  the  only  refuge  of  the  liberties  of  mankind  "  ("  Select 
Speeches  of  Grattan,"  edited  by  Duffy,  p.  104).  The  menace  of  that  "hostility 
to  the  pretensions  of  England  "  which  Franklin  had  sought  to  excite  in  Ireland 
grew  aggressively  until  it  proved  powerful  to  reenforce  American  valor  in 
establishing  the  independence  of  the  revolting  States. 

The  Americans  had  incited  in  the  Irish  a  fervor  for  freedom  which  Lord 
North  and  his  contemporaries,  in  spite  of  conciliation,  corruption,  and  conces- 
son,  failed  to  calm.  It  did  not  evoke  a  crisis  till  1782,  and  it  did  not  make  the 
country  a  shambles  till  1798:  but  from  the  first  it  was  an  ever-present  danger 
at  the  very  heart  of  the  British  Empire  and  it  gravely  handicapped  the  war 
council  at  Westminster  in  the  conduct  of  their  operations  against  the  American 
revolutionaries. 

But  apart  altogether  from  the  influence  which  Ireland's  attitude  exerted  upon 
the  fate  of  the  American  Revolution.  England  had  direct  evidence  of  the  Irish 
share  in  her  defeat. 

Practically  the  first  blow  in  the  Revolution  was  struck  on  behalf  of  the 
American  rebels  by  the  son  of  a  Limerick  schoolmaster,  John  Sullivan,  of  New 
Hampshire,  who  on  December  13.  1774,  captured  the  Fort  of  William  and  Mary. 
The  first  stroke  at  British  sea  powej  was  delivered  for  America  off  Machias.  on 
the  coast  of  Maine,  in  May.  1775.  by  Jeremiah  O'Brien.  Richard  Montgomery, 
of  Rapahoe.  and  other  Irish  generals  helped  to  lead  the  American  forces  in  the 
field*:  Andrew  Brown,  an  Ulsterman.  served  as  Mustermaster  General ;  Stephen 
Moylan,  brother  of  the  Bishop  of  Cork,  acted  as  aid-de-camp  to  Washington 
and  later  as  Quartermaster  General  to  the  Forces;  John  Barry,  formerly  of 
Wexford,  founder  of  the  American  Navy,  scoured  the  seas  ;  the  Friendly  Sons 
of  St.  Patrick  contributed  to  the  revolutionary  treasury  $517,000.  an  immense 
sum  in  those  days;  and  men  of  Irish  birth  and  blood  stood  high  in  the  councils 
of  the  revolutionary  Government.  The  famous  Pennsylvania  line,  the  bulwark 
of  the  American  defense,  was  called  "  the  line  of  Ireland,"  so  largely  was  it 
formed  of  Irishmen.  The  New  Jersey  line  "  bristled  with  Irishmen."  There 
were  Irishmen  in  every  American  camp  and  field.  In  the  course  of  a  debate  in 
the  Irish  House  of'Commons  on  April  2,  1784.  the  Hon.  Luke  Gardiner  stated: 

I  am  assured  from  the  best  authority  that  the  major  portion  of  the  American 
Army  was  composed  of  Irish  and  that  the  Irish  language  was  as  commonly 


108 


THE   IHISH  QUESTION. 


spoken  Id  the  American  ranks  as  English,  I  am  also  Informed  that  it  was 
their  valor  determined  the  contest  so  that  England  had  America  detached  from 
her  by  force  of  Irish  emigrants." 

Major  General  Robertson,  of  the  British  Army,  in  "The  Evidence  as  Given 
Before  a  Committee  of  the  Bouse  of  Commons  on  the  Detail  and  the  Conduct  of 

the  American  War"  (London.  L785),  is  recorded  as  testifying  under  oath  that 
the  American  General,  Henry  Lee,  informed  him  that  "half  the  rebel  Conti- 
nental army  were  from  Ireland." 

In  1771)  Count  Arthur  Dillon,  the  son  of  an  Irish  nobleman  in  the  serv  ice  of 
Louis  XVI.  addressed  io  the  French  War  Office  a  petition  on  behalf  of  all  the 
Irish  soldiers  in  France  craving  that  they  be  allowed  to  go  to  fight  for  Amer- 
ican freedom.  The  petition  being  granted,  he  sailed  from  Brest  with  "J.^io 
Irish  troops.  In  conformity  with  the  American  plan  of  campaign,  Dillon  was 
directed  to  attack  British  strongholds  in  trie  AYost  Indies.  lie  and  the  other 
Irishmen,  the  very  van  of  the  forces  sent  from  France,  soon  paralyzed  British 
power  in  the  West  Indies  and  captured  there  bases  of  British  activity  against 
America.  Presently,  Count  Arthur  Dillon  was  Governor  of  St.  Christopher; 
Lieutenanl  Colonel  [Thomas  Fitzmaurice,  Governor  of  St.  Eustasia,  and  Lieu- 
tenant Colonel  H.  D.  Dunn,  Commandant  of  the  Island  of  Granada. 

The  Irish  died  on  the  field,  languished  in  the  British  prison  hulks  in  the 
harbor  of  New  York,  lived  maimed,  and  were  branded  traitors,  that  America 
should  be  free.  And  when  the  Declaration  of  Independence  wa s  issued  among 
those  who  signed  it  were:  Smith,  Taylor,  and  Thornton,  of  Irish  birth;  McKean, 
Read,  and  Routledge,  of  Irish  parentage;  Carroll  and  Lynch,  grandsons  of 
Irishmen:  and  Hancock  and  Whipple,  of  Irish  descent  on  the  maternal  side. 
Well  might  George  Washington  Parke  Custis,  the  adopted  son  of  the  Father  of 
the  Tinted  Stales,  says  to  his  countrymen: 

•'The  Shamrock'  should  be  entwined  with  the  laurels  of  the  Revolution. 
Americans,  recall  to  your  minds  the  recollections  of  this  heroic  time  when  Irish- 
men were  your  friends  and  when  in  the  whole  World  we  had  not  a  friend  beside. 
The  rank  .mass  had  grown  over  the  grave  of  many  a  poor  Irishman  who  had 
died  tor  America  ere  the  Flag  of  the  Lilies  floated  in  the  field  by  the  Star- 
Spangled  Banner." 

The  triumph  of  the  American  cause  had  the  consequence  in  Ireland  which  the 
American  Fathers  had  humanely  foreseen  in  the  case  of  Jamaica.  The  Irish  share 
in  that  triumph  induced  a  very  natural  resentment  in  England,  to  which  the  prox- 
imity of  America's  chief  and  most  jubilant  accomplice  afforded  an  occasion  and 
an  opportunity  for  leisurely  satisfaction.  Hence  we  find  General  Abercromby. 
the  penitent  chief  of  the  British  Forces  in  Ireland,  writing  of  the  '98  rebellion  : 
"Every  cruelty  and  crime  that  could  be  committed  by  Cossacks  or  Calmucks 
had  been  committed  in  Ireland  by  the  Army  and  with  the  sanction  of  those  in 
high  office."  After  the  rebellion  of  1867  John  Stuart  Mill  (Pamphlet,  "England 
and  Ireland'*)  felt  sorrowfully  impelled  still  to  confess:  "Short  of  actual  de- 
population and  desolation  and  the  direct  enslaving  of  the  inhabitants  little  was 
omitted  in  Ireland  which  could  give  a  people  cause  to  execrate  its  conqueror." 
Americans  may  gage  the  bitterness  of  England's  resentment  by  the  long  per- 
sistence of  her  hostility  to  America,  in  spite  of  the  conciliatory  efforts  of  the 
best  statesmen  of  both  countries:  and  its  continued  action  in  Ireland  was  demon- 
strated in  May.  11)1(5.  by  the  brutality  of  the  executions  of  the  Irish  rebels,  then 
daily  occurring  in  Dublin,  a  brutality  which  led  the  doyen  of  American  liter- 
ature, a  sincere  friend  of  England,  William  Dean  Howells,  publicly  to  protest 
that  mercy  was  still  an  attribute  to  justice. 

The  triumph  of  America  imposed  another  and  a  greater  burden  upon  Ireland. 
Economic  conditions,  unrelieved  by  a  resentful  England  and,  in  part,  imposed 
by  her.  together  with  the  lure  of  freedom,  converted  Ireland  into  a  nursery  for 
the  great  American  Republic  and  depleted  Ireland  not  only  of  her  man  power 
but  also  of  the  resources  and  energies  absorbed  in  training  citizens  to  the 
greater  honor  and  glory  of  the  United  States.  In  the  last  seventy  years  the 
population  of  Ireland  has  sunk  from  8,175,124  to  4,390.219;  over  6,000,000  people 
have  left  her  sliores,  and  the  vast  majority  of  these  sailed  for  America. 

The  success  of  the  American  Revolution  forewarned  the  Government  of  Eng- 
land and  taught  them  successfully  to  resist  its  repetition  elsewhere.  So  Ire- 
land's task  became  more  formidable,  while  she  grew  physically  less  able  to 
accomplish  it.  In  other  words,  America's  triumph  immeasurably  increased  the 
odds  against  Ireland.  A  striking  example  of  this  result  is  visible  at  present 
when  Ireland  is  in  possession  of  an  English  army  of  occupation  wdiich  musters 
onlv  half  the  number  of  the  Irish  horn  who  fell  in  the  American  Civil  War. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


109 


Bur  in  177(3  a  new  principle  was  forever  established  in  the  world,  a  principle 
that  was  assumed  to  be  self-evident,  the  principle  of  the  absolute  and  equal 
natural  rights  of  man.  rights  derived  from  God  alone.  This  principle  was 
graveu  on  Irish  minds  by  America,  when  Irishmen  had  the  honor  to  contribute 
greatly  to  its  triumphant  vindication  on  behalf  of  the  citizens  of  the  United 
States.  The  principle  is  obviously  as  applicable  to  Ireland  as  it  was  to  America, 
and  Irishmen,  in  spire  of  all  handicaps,  have  never  abated  their  efforts  to  en- 
force their  right  to  apply  it  to  Ireland.  Since  the  days  when  she  was  incited  by 
America  to  assert  that  right  "  with  the  expectation  that  our  (America's)  grow- 
ing weight  might  in  turn  be  thrown  into  one  scale  *  *  *  that  a  more  equi- 
table treatment  from  this  nation  (England)  might  be  obtained  for  themselves  as 
well  as  for  us."  Ireland  has  continuously  maintained  her  right.  A  succession  of 
patriots  in  179S.  1803.  1848.  1867.  and  in  1916  M  dared  beyond  their  strength  and 
hazarded  against  their  judgment  and  in  extremities  were  of  an  excellent  hope  " 
that  that  right  might  not  lapse.  More  a  small  nation  unaided  may  not  accom- 
plish for  freedom,  and  more  is  not  necessary  to  establish  now  the  unequivocal 
right  of  Ireland  to  the  full  and  free  application  of  President  Wilson's  principle 
of  self-determination. 

4s  many  Irishmen  have  fallen  in  this  war  as  Americans.  Unlike  some  now 
specially  favored  peoples,  the  Irish  have  fallen  righting  only  for  the  Allies'  cause. 
If  a  geographical  situation  within  the  Empires  of  the  Central  Powers  be  not  the 
only  claim  to  freedom  which  is  now  valid,  the  claim  of  Ireland  should  be.  at 
least  in  America,  on  an  equality  with  the  claims  of  other  subject  nations.  But 
while  other  nations  are  fortunately  freed.  Irish  leaders  are  held  without  form  or 
trial  or  charge  in  English  jails,  an  alien  army  occupies  Ireland,  martial  law 
prevails  there,  and  the  press  and  the  people  are  held  incommunicado.  Will 
Americans  now  recall  to  their  minds,  as  Custis  once  exhorted  them,  that  heroic 
time  when  Irishmen  were  their  friends  and  when  in  the  whole  world  they  had 
n«>t  a  friend  beside V  For  to-day.  as  in  the  days  of  Grattan.  America  "  is  the 
only  hope  of  Ireland."  It  is.  however,  a  strong  and  confident  hope,  for  on  the 
fate  of  Ireland  rests  the  whole  moral  structure  of  the  Allied  cause,  and  the 
warrant  of  America's  President  is  sufficient  guarantee  for  the  integrity  of  that 
structure. 

THE  IRISH  ISST  E  IX  ITS  ENGLISH  ASPECT. 

When  America,  mainly  to  enforce  in  Europe  her  cardinal  national  principle 
of  M  government  only  by  the  consent  of  the  governed."  joined  with  England 
against  Germany,  unity  of  moral  purpose  as  well  as  the  former  identity  and. 
unbroken  community  of  American  with  Irish  interests,  together  with  the  prom- 
inent part  which  Americans  of  Irish  blood  would  inevitably  play  in  this  coun- 
try's war  efforts,  seemed  morally  to  require  that  England  should  free  Ireland. 
England  refused.  America's  first  objective  in  the  war  was  the  defeat  of  Ger- 
many. To  attain  it,  the  maximum  effort  of  .  the  Allied  strength  was  needful, 
and  was  procurable  only  through  the  completely  harmonious  association  of 
America  with  England.  It  became,  therefore,  impolitic  for  America  to  urge  a 
denied  claim  upon  her  obdurate  associate.  England's  refusal  led  the  American 
authorities  to  regard  Ireland's  demand  for  freedom  as  a  possible  cause  of  dis- 
cord in  American  national  unity :  hence.  America,  the  belligerent,  proceeded 
to  discourage  Ireland's  demand. 

Powerful  influences,  both  domestic  and  alien,  were  then  brought  to  bear 
upon  American  pubile  opinion,  and  that  court,  so  far  as  the  case  of  Ireland 
was  concerned,  virtually  abdicated  its  function,  in  favor  of  England.  Irish 
witnesses  were  denied  a  hearing,  or  were  allowed  to  testify  only  through  Eng- 
land's advocates  who.  at  their  pleasure,  suppressed,  altered,  or  mutilated  the 
Irish  testimony.  The  Mansion  House  Committee,  consisting  of  the  Nationalist. 
Sinn  Fein,  and  Labor  leaders,  prepared  a  brief  of  Ireland's  case  (June  11. 
191S).  in  the  form  of  an  address  to  President  Wilson,  and  deputed  the  Lord 
Mayor  of  Dublin  to  deliver  it  at  Washington.  Because  the  address  to  the 
President  was  not  submitted  to  the  approval  of  the  military  governor  of  Ire- 
land. England  refused  passports  for  the  journey :  and  when  the  address 
ultimately  reached  this  country,  through  Ambassador  Page,  the  American  press, 
with  scarcely  an  exception,  denied  publicity  to  it. 

The>e  facts  are  now  cited  mainly  to  prove  that  England  was  entirely  unin- 
fluenced and  unhampered  in  the  preparation  and  presentation  of  her  defense 
again<t  Ireland's  claim.  The  form  which  that  defense  took  may,  therefore,  be 
presumed  to  be  the  English  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue,  which  England  desires 


110 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


every  American  to  appreciate!.  And  now  that  Germany  is  vanquished  it  is  surely 
permissible — and.  perhaps,  essential  to  America's  purpose  in  the  war — to  ex- 
amine this  English  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue. 

England  alleged,  first,  that  Ireland  was  too  poor  to  exist  unaided  as  well  as 
too  weak  to  live  Undefended,  and  was.  in  fact,  at  the  moment  both  subsisting 
on  England's  bounty  and  sheltering  under  the  protection  of  England's  army  and 
navy;  secondly,  that  the  Irish  were  too  backward  to  be  competent  for  self- 
government,  but  were,  nevertheless,  through  the  Irish  representatives  In  the 
British  Parliament,  allowed  to  share  in  the  government  not  only  of  Ireland,  but 
also  of  Britain  and  of  the  Empire;  thirdly,  that  the  Irish,  being  divided  into  dis- 
cordant groups  Of  Catholics  and  Protestants,  of  Ulsterites  and  natives,  of  Union- 
ists. Nationalists,  and  Sinn  Faucis,  were  notoriously  incapable  of  agreeing 
among  themselves  as  to  the  form  Of  government  they  desired,  and  that,  there- 
fore, the  Irish  alone  were  to  blame  for  placing  England,  in  the  interests  of  peace 
and  order,  under  the  necessity  of  continuing  to  govern  Ireland.  At  this  point 
in  the  case,  in  response  to  a  suggestion  made  by  leading  Americans  that  to 
facilitate  the  free  development  of  America's  war  strength,  as  well  as  for 
other  reasons,  a  settlement  was  desirable  and  might  be  possible  (Sym- 
posium of  American  opinion  published  by  the  London  Times  April  27,  19il), 
the  Prime  Minister  of  England  offered  on  behalf  of  his  Government'  (Letter 
from  Mr.  Lloyd  George  to  Mr.  John  Redmond.  May  16,  1917)  a  convention  of 
Irishmen,  and  later,  his  pledge  that  "  if  that  convention  could  substantially  agree 
upon  any  form  of  government  for  Ireland,  within  the  Empire,  England  would 
legalize  that  agreement."  Certain  of  the  Irish  objected  that  the  rider,  "within 
the  Empire,"  begged  the  whole  question  at  issue.  The  objection  was  ignored; 
and  England  appointed  a  group  of  Irish  peers  and  commoners  who,  on  April 
5,  1918,  by  a  filial  vote  of  forty-four  to  twenty-nine,  agreed  on  a  plan  for  the 
self-government  of  Ireland  (Official  Report  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  Irish 
Convention,  p.  ITU).  England,  on  the  grounds  (1)  that  the  twenty-nine  in  the 
minority  represented  the  British  in  Ireland  whom  the  mother  country  could 
not  in  conscience  condemn  to  the  status  of  irredentists,  and  (2)  that  the  size  of 
the  majority  denoted  lack  of  "  subsantial  "  agreement,  declined  to  fulfil  the 
Prime  Minister's  pledge:  and,  instead,  proceeded  to  allege  that  the  Irish  issue, 
being  a  question  solely  of  England's  domestic  policy,  was  a  British  and  not  an 
Irish  question.  In  proof  of  this  contention,  conscription  of  the  Irish  solely  by 
the  English  and  against  the  unanimous  vote  of  the  Irish  representatives  in 
Commons  was  passed  on  April  17.  1918:  therefore  the  Irish  issue  was  beyond  the 
jurisdiction  of  American  public  opinion. 

Lastly,  Britain  asserted,  that  Ireland  was  an  enemy  both  of  England  and  of 
America,  was,  moreover,  a  friend  of  Germany,  and  was,  therefore,  a  menace 
and  should  be  outlawed  and  debarred  from  justice.  In  support  of  the  last 
contention  (1)  certain  events  of  the  rising  of  1916  were  disinterred  (chiefly 
Roger  Casement's,  activities  and  the  alleged  attempt  to  land  arms  for  the  Irish 
Republicans  made  by  the  S.  S.  "Auk")  and  exposed  to  the  public  gaze;  (2)  an 
ex-police  official  of  Irish  birth,  lately  a  corporal  in  the  British  army,  was,  first, 
mysteriously  produced  from  an  island  on  the  west  coast  of  Ireland  where 
he  was  said  to  have  landed  from  a  German  submarine,  and  then  ostentatiously 
interned  in  the  Tower  of  London:  and  (3)  eighty-six  of  Ireland's  leaders 
were  suddenly  arrested  (May  19.  1918)  and  deported  to  England,  without 
charge  or  form,  under  the  imputation  of  being  concerned  in  a  German  plot. 

The  first  remarkable  feature  of  this  English  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue  is  its 
irrelevancy.  The  Irish  issue,  the  right  of  the  Irish  to  "  government  only  by  the 
consent  of  the  governed,"  was  neither  admitted  nor  denied  ;  nor  was  it  ever 
even  discussed  by  England.  No  effort  was  made  to  prove  by  geography  or 
history,  by  ethnography  or  tradition,  by  religion  or  customs  that  Ireland  was  an 
Inseparable  part  of  Britain.  So  soon  after  the  1916  Rebellion,  England  could 
not  credibly  allege  that  the  Irish  did  not  desire  freedom;  nor  was  there  avail- 
able such  evidence  of  Irish  content  with  things  appertaining  either  to  this 
world  or  to  the  next,  and  derived  from  English  rule,  as  would  condone  that 
rule  in  Ireland.  In  brief,  the  morality  of  the  English  occupation  of  Ireland 
was  not  defended.  Would  it  be  permissible  to  infer  that  the  English  occupa- 
tion of  Ireland  is  morally  indefensible? 

It  was  not  on  the  grounds  of  the  morality  but  of  the  expediency  of  that  occu- 
pation that  sanction  for  it  was  sought  by  England  from  America.  In  1914, 
when  Ireland  was  hailed  by  England's  Foreign  Secretary,  Grey,  "  as  the  one 
bright  spot  in  the  darkness  of  war."  when  Ireland's  war  efforts  rivaled  Eng- 
land's, America,  at  that  time  a  neutral  spectator,  observed  that  Ireland  was 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION. 


Ill 


then,  no  less  rhan  she  now  is.  denied  her  freedom :  and  was.  besides,  commonly 
subject  to  that  Zabernism  which  Mr.  Lloyd-George  later  excused  as  arising 
from  "  the  malignant  stupidities  of  the  War  Office.'*  The  Auk.  in  1916,  failed 
where  a  Danish  S.  S..  renamed  the  Fanny,  and  chartered  by  the  Carsonists.  had 
succeeded  in  1914.  On  April  26  of  that  year  the  Fanny  landed  at  Larne  50.000 
rifles,  purchased  from  the  Deutsche  Munitionen  unci  Waffen  Fabrik.  and  shipped 
from  Hamburg:  and  the  Germans,  thereby  encouraged,  started,  in  the  following 
August,  the  world  war  that  has  just  come  to  an  end. 

Carson's  activities  were  the  incentive  to  Casement's.  America,  the  reluctant 
belligerent,  has  doubtless  judged  Carson  :  America,  the  America  of  Nathan  Hale, 
has  doubtless  judged  Casement  also. 

The  allegation  that  Ireland  is  hostile  to  America  was  too  vaguely  put  to  per- 
mit or  to  require  refutation.  Unlike  the  Poles,  the  Czechs  and  Slovaks,  and 
others  now  much  favored,  no  Irish  can  be  accused  of  lighting  in  the  German 
army.  The  fewness  of  the  Irish  prisoners  in  Germany  who  are  stated  to  have 
harkened  to  Casement  is  in  itself  proof  of  Ireland's  loyalty  to  the  Allied  cause. 
The  English  royal  princes  and  Houston  Chamberlains  in  the  German  army  far 
outnumbered  the  suborned  starving  Irish  captives.  Friendship  with  Germany 
(except  amongst  those  Ulsterites  who,  in  1914.  invoked  the  aid  of  that  great 
'"Protestant  Prince."  the  Kaiser)  was  and  is  by  necessity  nonexistant  in  an 
Ireland  whose  chief  link  with  Germany  is  hateful  memories  of  Hessians  and 
Hanoverian  kings.  Moreover.  Ireland  alone  in  all  the  world  afforded  organized 
combatant  aid  to  France  in  the  Franco-Prussian  war.  Again,  the  enlistment — 
even  at  the  cost  of  serving  in  the  British  army — of  five  per  cent  of  the  4,000,000 
people  of  Ireland — from  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  available  male  popula- 
tion— not  to  mention  the  Irish  casualties,  far  exceeding  in  number  those  re- 
ported to  date  (November  11)  suffered  by  the  110.000.000  people  of  the  United 
States,  is  not  a  sign  of  love  for  Germany.  Tben.  too.  after  the  United  States. 
Ireland  was  the  chief  source  of  England's  food  supply  in  the  war.  surely  not  an 
evidence  of  a  plot  with  Germany.  Finally,  the  almost  complete  destruction — 
even  to  the  final  tragedy  of  the  Leinster — by  the  German  submarines  of  all 
ships  plying  from  Irish  ports,  ships  Irish-manned — these  discreetly  unempha- 
sized  things  are  surely  no  evidence  of  friendship  with  the  Central  Powers,  much 
less  of  conspiracy  therewith. 

Concerning  the  German  plot,  the  Irish  pointed  out  that  the  former  police 
official,  the  alleged  submarine  passenger,  had  landed  not  from  a  submarine  col- 
lapsible but  from  a  Ford  collapsible  boat  made  in  the  city  of  Cork;  and  his  trial 
for  treason,  in  London,  was  not  secret  enough  to  hide  the  fact  that  he  had  noth- 
ing German  to  reveal.  It  was  also  pointed  out  that  the  Irish  revolutionary 
leaders,  imprisoned  in  England  at  the  bare  announcement  of  the  plot,  were, 
during  the  time  that  the  plotting  was  alleged  to  have  occurred  in  Ireland,  actu- 
ally held  in  English  jails  because  of  their  part  in  the  events  of  1916.  Lord 
Wimborne.  the  Viceroy  during  whose  administration  the  plotting  was  alleged  to 
have  taken  place  in  Ireland,  stated  from  his  place  in  the  British  House  of 
Lords,  before  the  plot  was  announced,  that  the  Irish  were  not  pro-German  but 
pro-Irish  ( November  15.  1917 ) .  After  the  plot  was  announced  he  denied  the 
existence  of  any  such  conspiracy.  And  from  then  till  now  England  has  dis- 
closed no  credible  evidence  of  the  alleged  plot  and  has  declined  not  only  to 
bring  to  trial  but  even  to  charge  the  alleged  plotters.  Under  the  circumstances, 
is  the  conclusion  that  the  alleged  plot  was  bogus,  unwarranted?  Would  it  be 
right  to  contrast  (1)  the  grounds  of  expediency  which  England  used  to  justify 
the  military  occupation  of  a  helpless  Ireland  thus  alleged  to  be  friendly  to  the 
enemy.  Germany,  with  (2)  the  grounds  of  expediency  which  Bethmann-Hollweg 
with  frank  brutality  used  to  justify  Germany  in  the  occupation  of  a  helpless 
Belgium  alleged  to  be  friendly  to  the  enemy.  England? 

Nations  in  being  vanquished  are  made  poor  ami  weak  and  are  kept  so  to 
keep  them  subject.  As  a  further  military  precaution,  conquered  peoples  are 
degraded,  divided,  and  colonized  by  the  victor.  The  first  four  points  in  the 
English  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue  seem  chiefly  the  stereotyped  and  tragic  conse- 
quences of  usurpation,  disguised  by  time  and  perverted  in  origin.  These  four 
points  sufficed  both  to  condemn  German  usurpation  in  Poland  and  to  justify 
English  usurpation  in  Ireland.  Tbe  colonists  whom  Germany  had  planted  in 
Alsace-Lorraine  served  only  to  strengthen  the  French  demand  for  restitution: 
the  colonists  England  had  planted  in  Ireland — now  in  many  cases  more  Irish 
and  anti-English  than  the  Irish — served  only. to  strengthen  the  English  denial 
of  restitution  there.  England  correctly  characterized  as  a  temporary  expedient 
of  evident  insincerity  the  German  decree  of  December  8.  1916,  which  appointed 


L12 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


a  Polish  Council  and  deputed  to  thai  Council  the  drafting  of  a  plan  for  the  seW- 
uovernnienl  of  Poland  within  the  German  Empire.  England  on  May  Hi,  .1917. 
announced  thai  she  was  about  to  appoint  an  Irish  Convention  and  to  depute  to 
that  Convention  the  drafting  of  a  plan  for  the  self-government  of  Ireland  within 
the  British  Empire.  Germany  set  up  a  provisional  Polish  Government  and  re 
quested  it  to  conseripl  the  Poles,  and  Germany  set  up  a  provisional  Esthonian 
Government  and  requested  it  to  conscript  the  Esthonians,  for  which  England 
rightfully  denounced  Germany.  But  without  even  this  Teutonic  concession  to 
nationality,  the  British  enacted  conscription  for  Ireland.  Would  it  be  just  to 
conclude  thai  the  Irish  issue  in  its  English  aspect,  as  successfully  presented  to 
the  American  people  by  England,  differed  only  in  nomenclature  from  the  Polish, 
Ksi  honian.  Alsatian,  and  Belgian  issues  in  their  German  aspect,  as  successfully 
presented  by  Germany  to  the  German  people? 

This  English  aspect  of  the  Irish  might  be  thought  to  be  merely  the  wTar-fevered 
fancy  of  irresponsible  English  propagandists.  But  present  conditions  in  Ire- 
land show  that  the  conduct  of  the  English  in  Ireland  both  conforms  to  the 
English  propaganda  here  and  duplicates  the  conduct  of  Germany  toward  her 
subject  peoples.  And  this  English  conduct  toward  Ireland  is  not  a  new  de- 
velopment, induced  by  the  stress  of  war,  in  a  sorely  beset  England.  While 
Britain  abroad  was  championing  the  cause  of  Greece  and  Hungary,  Italy,  and 
Poland,  just  as  to-day  she  is  championing  the  cause  of — among  others — the 
CzechO-SlovakS,  Esthonians,  Arabians,  and  JugO-Slavs,  and  is  insisting  upon 
self-determination  for  the  German  African  Askari,  England  at  home  held,  as 
she  now  holds.  Ireland  from  freedom.  When  circumstances  compelled,  England 
gave  Ireland  doles  of  liberty,  and  withdrew  or  reclaimed  them  when  circum- 
stances permitted.  In  1782  England,  in  difficulties  with  America,  France,  and 
Holland,  yielded  to  Ireland  legislative  independence  forever:  in  1800  England, 
in  fewer  difficulties,  destroyed  the  independent  Irish  Parliament.  Catholic 
emancipation  in  Ireland  was  and  is  vitiated  by  Protestant  ascendancy  rule. 
Nearly  KHi  separate  coercion  acts,  together  with  periods  of  martial  law,  have 
efficiently  tilled  the  void  in  the  English  system  of  governing  Ireland  left  by 
the  repeal  of  the  penal  laws.  The  Irish  in  1903  were  partially  restored  to  their 
own  land,  by  the  aid  of  money  borrowed  in  England  and  repaid  with  interest 
by  the  Irish.  The  home-rule  act,  passed  in  101.').  lias  since  remained  securely 
interned  among  inoperative  British  statutes. 

It  is  not  necessary  further  lo  multiply  instances  to  prove  that  the  English 
aspect  of  the  Irish  issue  has  ever  been  what  it  now  is.  the  conventional  aspect 
of  a  conqueror  to  a  conquered  people;  and  if  to-day  be  any  guide  to  the  mor- 
row, England  intends  to  continue  to  apply  to  Ireland,  so  far  as  America  will 
permit,  those  standards  which  another  arbitrary  pOwer  was  also  wont  to  follow 
in  dealing  with  subject  peoples  now  happily  free.  America,  the  belligerent, 
might  permil  an  associate  much  that  is  fortunately  not  American  either  in 
principle  or  in  purpose,  even  the  English  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue,  because  of 
the  necessity  to  substitute  the  American  for  the  German  aspect  of  certain 
other  national  issues  deemed  more  urgent.  The  armistice  is  now  signed;  these 
issues  are  in  process  of  satisfactory  rectification;  the  substitution  of  the  Ameri- 
can for  the  English  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue,  the  institution  in  Ireland  of  govern- 
ment only  by  the  consent  of  the  people,  is  now  in  order. 

THE   HUSH   1SS1K   IX    ITS    IRISH  ASPECT- 

At  the  time  of  the  American  Revolution  the  statemen  of  America  and  of  Ire- 
land had  attained  to  almost  the  same  eminence  of  political  conception,  and  in 
their  zeal  to  give  to  their  respective  peoples  the  principle  of  popular  freedom, 
they  had  gone  much  further  than  any  contemporary  nation.  One  hundred  and 
forty  years  later  America  is  the  arbiter  of  the  world's  destinies,  and  Ireland 
seems  to  lie  the  last,  if  not  the  least,  of  the  world's  concerns.  The  question  in- 
evitably arises:  Has  Ireland  affirmed  her  right  to  freedom  by  all  the  ways  a 
conscious  nationality  can  affirm  that  right?  The  answer  can  be  found  in  Ire- 
land's history  only.  The  events  of  that  history  are  indisputable  and  undisputed. 
Such  of  these  events  as  resulted"  from  Irish  action  reflect  the  Irish  aspect  of 
the  Irish  issue.  Ireland  can  ask  no  fairer  presentation  of  her  case  than  that 
which  the  Irish  themselves  have  offered  at  the  court  of  history.  And  America 
can  seek  no  better  guide  to  the  nature  of  the  Irish  issue,  and  its  Irish  aspect, 
than  that  which  history  affords  of  the  period  from  the  end  of  the  American  War 
of  Independence  to  the  present  day. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


113 


At  the  very  beginning  of  that  period,  the  first  great  affirmation  of  Irish  na- 
tionality occurred :  An  Irish  volunteer  army,  over  100.000  strong,  was  organized 
(1782).  With  this  army  Ireland  was  r-ontent  to  accept  from  England  a  parlia- 
ment endowed  with  M  perpetual "  legislative  independence  for  Ireland.  The 
mass  of  the  Irish  people  were  excluded  from  direct  participation  in  this  parlia- 
ment :  but.  as  it  represented  Irish,  as  distinguished  from  English  rule.  Ireland 
welcomed  it-  although  America,  more  wise,  had  declined  in  li  i8  a  similar  Eng- 
lish substitute  for  freedom.  "  In  1783.  a  haughty  petition  was  addressed  to  the 
throne  on  behalf  of  the  Roman  Catholics  by  an  association  styling  itself  a  Con- 
gress. No  man  could  suppose  that  a  designation,  so  ominously  significant,  had 
been  chosen  by  accident :  and  by  the  court  of  England  it  was  received,  as  it 
was  meant,  for  an  insult  and  a  menace.  What  came  next?"  (De  Quincey. 
4iThe  Irish  Rebellion."  "  Essay  in  Life  and  Manners."  Boston.  1S51.  p.  127.1 
Next  came  the  suborning  of  the  planters  and  placemen  of  Ireland's  Parliament, 
till,  under  duress  and  largess,  they  yielded  their  function  to  the  English  Gov- 
ernment. The  Union  of  the  Irish  to  the  English  Parliament  was  not  legalized 
before  1800.  but  it  had  then  long  been  effective.  Defrauded  of  their 
perpetual  legislative  independence  by  extra-con<ritutional  means,  the  Irish 
sought  independence  by  arms  ( 179$ »  :  and  insurrections  followed  which  were 
not  finally  crushed  until  1S08.  The  Union  and  the  process  of  crushing  the 
rebellions,  deprived  Ireland  both  »f  her  planter  statesmen  and  of  her  republi- 
can revolutionaries:  and  for  a  time  Ireland  was  stunned  and  still  and  leader- 
less.  Then  O'Connell  appeared  with  his  scrupulously  constitutional  agitation 
to  amend  the  laws  by  which  Catholics  were  degraded  to  an  inferior  political 
status,  an  agitation  that  was  as  essentially  an  expression  of  a  demand  for 
political  freedom  as  was  the  militant  demonstration  of  the  Volunteers,  which 
extorted  the  1782  Parliament.  Peel  explained  his  conversion  to  the  cause  of 
emancipation  on  the  ground  that  the  peasants  of  Clare,  who  he  had  believed 
were  serfs,  were  the  possessors  of  the  "  true  and  unbreakable  spirit  of  free- 
men" Wellington  frankly  admitted  that  he  supported  the  measure  because 
**  the  Iri«h  regiments  were  cheering  for  O'Connell."  Then  the  Irish  people, 
with  the  sympathy  of  Ledru  Rollin  in  France  and  of  President  Tyler  in 
America,  put  forward  a  constitutional  demand  for  the  repeal  of  the  Union 
•  1S32-1S44»,  for  the  return  of  their  legislative  independence,  for  the  resump- 
tion of  that  path  to  freedom  which  they  had  trod  in  the  days  when  Franklin 
and  Washington  were  one  with  them  in  thought  and  in  purpose.  England  de- 
feated this  constitutional  demand  by  the  unconstitutional  imprisonment  of 
O'Connell  (1844).  Led  by  Smith  O'Brien  the  Irish  again  revolted  (1848 .».  Out 
of  the  grave  of  the  insurrection  of  184S  arose  the  Fenians,  a  physical-force 
party  pledged  to  an  Irish  republic,  a  party  that  was  defeated  and  dispersed  in 
the  risings  of  1867.  The  Church  of  Ireland,  mainly  a  hierarchy  of  aliens,  minis- 
tering to  les<  than  a  tenth  of  the  people  of  Ireland,  took  a  tithe  of  the  coun- 
try's goods.  As  an  instalment  of  freedom  the  Irish  sought  the  remission  of  this 
tribute  by  the  disestablishment  of  the  Church  that  legally  imposed  it.  Glad- 
stone who  enacted  the  disestablishment  in  the  English  Commons  (1868)  con- 
fessed that  it  was  the  Fenians  who  had  "  rung  the  chapel  bell."  and  he  had 
legislated  fearful  of  that  warning.  Meanwhile,  a  movement,  through  passive 
resistance,  strikes  and  sabotage,  to  free  the  peasant  from  the  status  of  chattel 
and  to  raise  him  to  the  level  necessary  for  a  sable  national  society,  had  spon- 
taneously developed  among  the  Irish  pea^ntry.  The  Irish  were  not  freed  by 
imperial  rescript,  as  were  the  "  souls  "  in  Russia.  A  long  and  relentless  strug- 
gle ensued  in  Ireland,  which  was  virtually  ended  by  the  Land  act  of  1903. 
While  this  struggle  was  waging,  the  fight  for  legislative  independence  continued. 
At  Westminster.  Parnell  stood  "  single  handed  in  the  ford  to  hack  and  hew  an 
ancient  parliament  till  it  fell  misshapen  from  his  sword."  The  fight  he  fought 
enabled  his  successor.  Redmond,  to  gain  for  Ireland,  first,  local  government  for 
counties  in  county  affairs  (1896) :  and.  finally,  that  modified  form  of  legislative 
independence  which  is  called  Home  Rule.  In  1912.  again  in  1913.  and  yet  again 
in  1914.  the  British  Commons  passed  the  Home  Rule  bill.  In  1914.  it  received 
the  endorsement  of  King.  Lords,  and  Commons.  It  was  then  M  suspended."  The 
Irish  after  this  final  lesson  in  the  futility  of  constitutional  endeavor,  again  re- 
sorted to  arms :  and  the  Republic  of  Ireland  was  once  more  proclaimed  ( Easter. 
1916*.  As  a  climax  to  this  period.  English-appointed  courts,  in  suits  brought 
by  Dublin  property  owners,  decreed  that  damage  done  in  the  1916  revolution 
was  legally  the  act  of  an  usurping  government  in  Ireland. 


97017—19  S 


114 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Every  Legislative  gain  sought  pr  achieved  by  Ireland  was  in  one  direction; 
every  gain  was  the  best  that  was  obtainable,  having  regard  to  the  circum- 
stances of  the  time;  every  method,  whether  constitutional  or  unconstitutional, 
was  devised  for  one  end  and  was  designed  to  overcome  the  prevailing  form 
<>i"  the  opposition  of  England;  every  leader  who  sprang  to  take  the  place 
of  him  who  fell  or  of  him  who  was  silenced  by  execution,  deportation,  or  im- 
prisonment led  the  forces  of  Ireland  toward  the  same  goal.  With  constitution- 
alists and  with  rebels,  in  peaceful  and  iii  forceful  methods.  In  victory  and  in 
defeat,  through  changes  of  leaders,  weapons,  strategy,  and  tactics,  this  ultimate 
purpose  of  Ireland  remained  clear  and  invariable.  It  was.  it  is.  and  it  will 
always  remain  the  vindication  of  the  right  of  Ireland  to  government  only  by  the 
consent  of  tin1  governed. 

In  this  review  Of  Ireland's  history,  measures  initiated  by  the  Irish  to  cement 
the  union  with  England  are  not  mentioned,  for  no  such  measures  exist.  Indeed, 
live  times  since1  the  establishment  of  the  American  Republic  the  Irish  have 
attempted  by  force  of  arms  to  found  the  republic  of  Ireland.  England  to 
this  day  professes  ignorance  of  the  Irish  issue  in  its  Irish  aspect  ;  hut  there 
was  always  at  hand  in  Ireland,  as  there  now  is.  an  English  army  to  suppress 
the  realization  of  the  ideal  of  the  republic  of  Ireland. 

In  this  review  of  Ireland's  history,  measures  initiated  by  the  Irish  and  apper- 
taining only  to  Ulster  are  not  mentioned,  for  no  such  measures  exist.  The 
Irish  leaders  in  this  continuous  struggle  came  from  all  quarters  of  the  coun- 
try— Gavan  Duffy,  John  Mitchel,  and  John  Martin  were  all  Ulstermen;  as  were 
also  Isaac  Butt  and  Roger  Casement.  They  belonged  to  both  creeds.  o'Con- 
nell,  Meagher,  and  I'earse  were  Catholics;  (Jrattan,  Tone.  Emmet.  Fitzgerald, 
Smith.  O'Brien,  Davis,  Mitchel,  Martin,  Parnell,  and  Casement  were  Protes- 
tants; and  they  were  drawn  from  all  classes,  from  Michael  Davitt  of  the  Irish 
peasantry  to  Edward  Fitzgerald  of  the  Irish  peerage.  In  the  ranks,  too,  all 
classes,  creeds,  and  provinces  loyally  served.  All  contributed  t<>  the  victories 
and  participated  in  their  results;  Catholic  emancipation  was  the  emancipation 
of  all  by  all  ;  the  Protestant  Dissenter  was  freed  with  his  Catholic  fellow 
countryman  ;  the  disestahlishment  of  the  Church  of  Ireland  relieved  of  the  tithe 
burden  the  Protestant  Nonconformist  no  less  than  the  Catholic;  the  peasantry 
of  Ulster  reached  the  status  of  proprietorship  at  the  same  moment  as  the 
peasantry  of  the  other  provinces ;  government  of  county  affairs  was  won  for 
Ulster  when  it  was  won  for  the  rest  of  Ireland.  And  all  classes,  creeds,  and 
provinces  have  sustained  each  other  in  the  course  of  the  struggle  and  have 
shared  the  burdens  that  could  not  be  removed,  the  casualties,  the  executions, 
the  imprisonments,  the  deportations,  the  evictions,  the  starvation,  and  the 
emigration.  The  struggle  is  unequaled  in  history  as  a  struggle  by  a  united 
nation  for  national  freedom. 

Few  nations  have  suffered  such  casualties  and  kept  their  identity  ;  hut  Ire- 
land is  still  Irish.  The  spirit  of  Ireland's  nationality  was  long  sustained  by 
the  Irish  priesthood.  O'Connell  founding  reading  rooms  in  every  village  and 
hamlet  to  educate  his  people.  Mangan.  Davis,  and  Duffy,  together  with  the  other 
Young  Irelanders,  roused  by  their  writings  that  pride  of  race  which  history 
bade  the  Irish  remember  and  which  serfdom  made  them  forget.  Douglas  Hyde 
and  his  Gaelic  League  restored  her  speech  to  Ireland  and  taught  her  the  glories 
of  her  ancient  literature.  Yeats,  Synge.  AE.  and  Colum  wrote  the  songs 
and  dramas  of  Irish  Ireland.  A  national  theater,  a  thing  unknown  in  England, 
flourished  in  Ireland.  I'earse  and  McDonagh  in  St.  Enda's  School  molded  the 
boyhood  of  Ireland  in  an  Irish  mold.  Eoin  MacNeill  and  others  made  the 
National  University  and  Irish  university.  Plunkett  and  Russell  led  the  Irish 
farmer  to  economic  independence  through  cooperation.  And  a  spirit  of  dignity, 
discipline,  self-reliance,  and  thrift,  an  Irish  spirit  worthy  of  an  Irish  nation, 
was  fostered  and  maintained  among  the  people  that  a  free  Ireland  might  be 
an  Irish  Ireland. 

Since  the  American  Revolution  roused  men  free  of  soul  in  every  land  Ireland 
in  her  history  has  consistently  shown  that  she  is  a  nation  in  the  grip  of  a 
national  ideal,  the  ideal  of  national  freedom.  In  spite  of  recurrent  slaughter, 
of  a  prison  policy  seldom  excelled  by  Tsars,  and  of  a  depopulation  which  the 
Turk  has  not  often  rivaled  and  very  rarely  surpassed,  Ireland  has  not  wavered 
from  her  purpose  to  be  free.  There  has  been  no  frailty  of  spirit,  no  lack  of 
energy,  no  want  of  determination,  no  dearth  of  daring,  no  shrinking  from 
sacrifice  in  the  affirmation  of  Ireland's  right  of  national  freedom.  Now.  at 
the  end  of  140  years  of  dauntless  endeavor,  when  Ireland  is  more  unconquer- 
able, more  Irish,  more  free  in  spirit,  and  more  determined  to  be  also  free  in 


::5 


fact,  if  it  likely  that  anything  short  of  the  full  application  of  President  Wilson's 
principles  will  satisfy  the  indomitable  people  of  Ireland? 

Circumstances  prospered  America,  out  not  Ireland,  and  the  legal,  social,  awl 
inteDectnal  censorship  which  England  exerts  over  the  En^Lsli-speaking  world 
has  further  tended  to  make  America  unmindful  of  die  fact  that  the  Irish  issue 
in  its  Irish  aspect  has  always  been  identical  with  what  was  once  the  American 
issue  in  its  American  aspect.  America  now  comes  mighty  from  the  vindication 
of  the  rights  of  subject  peoples  to  national  liberty.  But  what  will  it  profit  the 
soul  of  America  if  it  gain  the  freedom  of  the  whole  world  and  suffer  the  loss  of 
the  freedom  of  Ireland? 

From  1783  to  191S  England  has  found  it  necessary  on  over  100  occasions  to 
resort  to  coercion  acts,  supenskms  of  the  habeas  corpus  act.  martial  law.  and 
its  analogues  to  enforce  her  authority  in  Ireland.  In  1*44.  1881,  and  1916 
England  felt  compelled  to  imprison  the  Irish  leaders  en  masse  in  order  to  secure 
again  for  herself  executive  power  in  Ireland.  In  17S&  1805.  IStSL  18G7,  and  1916 
England  had  to  reconquer  Ireland,  and  England  now  holds  Ireland  by  virtue  of 
an  English  army  of  occupation  under  a  military  governor.  Will  not  these 
war  and  siege  uwamm  i  need  to  be  continued  until  Ireland  be  free,  a  nation 
once  again?  And  if  out  of  the  war  a  League  of  Nations  be  formed,  a  league 
that  lacks  the  nation  of  Ireland,  may  not  its  first  duty  be  to  aid  England  in 
Ireland,  as  the  Holy  Alliance  aided  Turkey  in  Greece? 

The  people  of  Ireland  have,  in  their  isolation,  set  at  defiance  England,  the 
possessor  of  an  empire  greater  than  that  of  ancient  Rome,  an  empire  to  which 
400.000000  are  subject,  to  which  the  riches  of  the  universe  are  tribute,  of  which 
the  world's  largest  navy  is  guard.  When  England  fought  against  and  when 
England  fought  alongside  the  United  States:  when  England  was  allied  with 
other  nations  of  Europe  against  Napoleon:  when  England  approved  of  that 
Alliance  against  freedom  that  was  profanely  styled  Holy :  when  England  with 
France  and  Piedmont  fought  Russia  in  the  Crimea  to  save  the  unspeakable 
Turk;  when  England  morally  supported  Prussia  against  Prance  in  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War :  when  England  as  Ribot  lately  disclosed,  entered  an  entente  with 
Germany  against  France  and  Russia :  when  England  allied  herself  with  Japan 
against  Russia :  when  England  with  France  and  Spain  united  against  Germany 
at  Algeciras:  when  England  was  associated  with  the  victorious  powers  of  the 
worlds — during  all  these  mutations  of  the  international  hatreds  and  friendships 
of  England,  the  people  of  Ireland  were  pursuing  their  immutable  purpose  of 
national  freedom.  If  a  League  of  Nations  that  lacks  the  nation  of  Ireland  be 
now  created,  will  not  Ireland  continue  dauntJessly  to  pursue  her  purpose  tin 
a  free  Ireland  be  recognized  as  an  essential  member  of  that  league  or  until  the 
league  itself  shall  become  a  thing  of  the  past  and  be  numbered  in  history  among; 

While  America  has  grown  to  greatness:  while  French  empires  and  republics 
have  arisen  and  passed  away:  while  Belgium.  Greece.  Italy.  Rumania.  Bul- 
garia, and  Serbia  have  been  born  as  nations  and  have  developed  into  powers; 
wMIe  Spanish.  Chinese.  Russian.  Austrian.  Turkish.  Mexican,  and  Brazilian 
empires  have  fallen  to  pieces:  while  the  German  empire  was  being  created, 
exalted,  and  destroyed :  while  Norway  seceded  from  Sweden  and  Iceland  from 
Denmark.  Ireland  was  persistently  fighting  her  fight  for  freedom.  Will  not  Ire- 
land continue  to  fight  on  till  she  be  free  or  till  the  empire  that  is  England  he 
overtaken  by  the  doom  that  is  the  fate  of  empires? 

But  if  Ireland  now  be  paid  her  earned  share  of  that  freedom  which  is  being 
squandered  on  the  promiscuous  and  chance  acquaintances  of  war — freedom, 
which  Redmond  and  Kettle  and  ~  more  than  5tt9.0Q0  Irishmen  "  from  Ireland, 
Britain.  Australia.  Canada,  and  New  Zealand  have  fought  to  win:  if  Ireland 
now  be  given  her  place  in  the  family  of  nations ;  if  Ireland's  leaders  be  deemed 
worthy  to  appear  alongside  the  Czechoslovaks  and  others  at  the  peace  con- 
ference: if  Ireland  now  be  enrolled  as  a  nation  in  the  League  of  Nations,  would 
not  America's  purpose  in  the  war  acquire,  what  it  still  lacks,  absolute  and  un- 
qualified moral  vindication?  Would  not  the  plain  people  of  England  be  gia  I 
that  at  last  am-mfcc  had  been  made  for  an  age-long  national  crime?  Would  not 
the  foundling  nations  of  the  world  see  in  the  nation  of  Ireland  a  promise  and  a 
sign  that  their  life  of  liberty  was  established  not  upon  the  precarious  tenure 
of  the  shifting  interests  of  selfish  Powers,  but  upon  the  firm  basis  of  an  in- 
alienable, unalterable,  and  universal  right?  Would  not  the  Irish  pilgrims.  n<  w 
risen  to  greatness  in  every  land,  become  disciples  of  the  new  world  order, 
apostles  of  the  new  world  freedom?  Would  not  an  Ireland,  free  to  live  her 
own  life.  t«»  think  her  own  thoughts,  to  write  her  «.»wn  message  to  the  world. 


116 


THK   HUSH  QUESTION. 


become  again,  as  she  once  was,  the  renter  of  Celtic  culture,  a  nation  of  teachers 
and  scholars,  of  messengers  of  peace  and  good  will  to  all  peoples,  oven  unto  the 
people  of  England  ? 

THE  IRISH  ISSl'K  IX  ITS  "  ULSTER  "  ASPECT. 

"  We  may  safely  state,"  writes  Van  Tyne  ( "  Loyalists  in  the  American  Revo- 
lution." p.  L83),  "thai  50,000  soldiers,  either  regular  or  militia,  wore  drawn 
into  the  service  of  Great  Britain  from  her  American  sympathizers."  These 
American  Loyalists  were  drawn  from  the  adherents  of  English  families  such  as 
"the  Carterets  and  the  Penns,  that  had  Large  financial  Interests  in  the  coun- 
try"  ;  Prom  those  who  "were  In  receipt  of  salaries  ,-is  colonial  officials";  from 
those  "  whose  families  had  so  long  enjoyed  the  emoluments  of  office  that  they 
formed  a  class  by  themselves";  and  from  British  military  officers,  pensioners, 
and  their  kin  (Channing,  "  History  of  the  United  States,'  Vol.  Ill,  p.  362). 

The  present-day  I'lster  Loyalists  are  composed  of  English  and  Anglo-Irish 
peers,  who  have  large  landed  and  financial  interests  in  the  country,  many  of 
whom,  like  Lord  Londonherry.  are  descended  from  the  men  who  sold  the  Irish 
Parliament  to  England;  of  those  who.  members  of  the  vast  Irish  bureaucracy; 
are  in  receipt  of  salaries  as  Irish  ofhcials;  of  those  whose  families  have  so  long 
enjoyed  the  emoluments  of  office  that  they  form  a  class  by  themselves:  of  cer- 
tain churchmen;  and  of  British  officers,  pensioners',  and  their  kin.  Some  idea 
of  the  Loyalism  of  the  last  class  may  ho  gathered  from  the  fad  that,  even 
during  the  late  war  for  the  freedom  of  small  nationalists,  in  the  Sixteenth,  the 
famous  Irish  division,  although  ninety-five  per  cent  of  the  men  were  National- 
ists, eighty-five  per  cent  of  the  officers,  and  all  above  the  lowest  grades,  wore 
Ulsterites  or  other  Unionists  (T.  F.  O'Connor.  House  of  Commons,  March  7, 
1917  i . 

In  177<;,  the  American  Loyalists  maintained  that  their  families  had  heen  in 
possession  of  the  land  since  its  settlement;  thai  they,  as  loyal  subjects,  "trem- 
bled at  the  thought  of  separation  from  England,"  which  "  was  as  necessary  to 
America's  safety  as  a  parent  to  its  infant  children  " ;  that  they  were  prosperous 
because  they  were  British";  that  "the  country  did  not  want  independence"; 
that  the  whole  agitation  "  was  due  to  political  adventurers  of  the  worst  type": 
and  that  "the  unfortunate  land  would  he  a  scene  of  bloody  discoid  for  ages" 
if  separated  from  England.  "We  were  formed,"  said  they  "by  England's  laws 
and  religion.  We  were  clothed  with  her  manufactures  and  protected  by  her 
fleets  and  hoi-  armies"  (Van  Tyne.  "  The  American  Revolution,"  pp.  86  and  ST). 

To-day  the  Ulster  Loyalists  maintain  that  their  families  have  heen  in  posses- 
sion of  the  land  since  the  colonizations  by  the  Stuarts  and  Cromwell ;  that  they 
tremble  at  the  thought  of  separation  from  England;  that  they  are  formed  by 
England's  laws  and  religion  and  are  protected  by  her  fleets  and  armies ;  that 
Ireland  does  not  want  independence;  that  the  whole  agitation  is  due  to  adven- 
turers of  the  worst  type:  that  the  unfortunate  land  would  he  a  scene  of  bloody 
discord  for  ages  if  separated  from  England ;  and  that  the  English  know  better 
how  to  govern  the  Irish  than  the  Irish  do  themselves.  "  By  her  sheer  industry 
and  her  connection  witli  England  Ulster  has  developed  into  the  richest  of  the 
Provinces  (of  Ireland).  *  *  *  The  people  of  Ulster  love  the  people  of 
England  and  will  not  be  driven  out  of  the  Tinted  Kingdom."  (Lord  London- 
derry, London  Times,  Apr.  6,  1914.) 

Now,  however,  there  is  little  dispute  in  Ireland  as  to  the  possession  of  the 
land.  Even  the  peers  who  assert  the  contrary  have  heen.  or  are  in  process  of 
being,  peacefully  bought  out  by  the  Irish  peasantry,  Catholic  and  Protestant, 
Olsterite  and  non-Ulsterite.  with  money  lent  under  the  terms  of  the  land  acts 
of  1903  and  1909.  Moreover,  Ulster  is  not  exclusively  Protestant,  for  it  contains 
690,816  Catholics  (45.67  per  cent)  out  of  a  population  of  1,581,696;  in  five  of 
the  nine  counties  Catholics  are  in  the  majority  and  17  of  the  33  parliamentary 
representatives  from  Ulster  are  Nationalists.  Besides,  the  Ulster  Protestants 
are  not  wholly  British;  there  is  a  considerable  admixture  of  descendants  of  the 
Huguenots,  who  came  to  Ulster  after  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes; 
and,  as  the  Parliamentary  returns  show,  many  of  the  Protestants  are  Na- 
tionalists. Further,  Ulster  is  not  the  richest  of  the  Provinces:  the  governmental 
ratable  value  of  Leinster  per  head  is  98  shilling;  of  Ulster  only  72  shillings. 
The  population  of  Ulster  fell  from  2,389,263  in  1861  to  1,581.696  in  1910:  this 
fall  affects  every  county ;  and  the  infantile  mortality,  the  best  index  of  civic 
institutions,  is  appalling  in  the  stronghold  of  Loyalism,  Belfast,  where  it 
chances  to  be  higher  in  the,  Protestant  than  in  the  Catholic  sections.    Ulster,  so 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


117 


far  from  glorying  in  citizenship  of  the  British  Empire,  led.  even  as  late  as  1910, 
in  the  emigration  from  Ireland.  (Mr.  John  Redmond.  London.  Mar.  1.  1912.) 
Nevertheless,  there  are  many  prosperous  Protestants  in  l  ister,  and  they  are 
nearly  all  Loyalists. 

When  America  was  still  a  colony  M  Protestant  dissenters,  descendants  of  the 
men  who  had  held  Londonderry,  went  in  great  numbers  to  America,  where  they 
became  the  most  irreconcilable  of  those  who  sought  separation  from  Eng- 
land"' (Ireland  To-Day,  p.  82.  reprinted  from  London  Times,  1913)  ;  and  when 
America  was  fighting  for  freedom  from  England  these  irreconcilable  separatists, 
the  Protestant  Ulsterites,  produced  American  leaders  like  Gen.  Richard  Mont- 
gomery and  Andrew  Brown.  The  Irish  Volunteers  in  1782  assembled  at  Dun- 
gannou.  in  Ulster,  and,  consisting  in  goodly  proportion  of  Protestant  Ulsterites, 
extorted  from  England  "perpetual"  legislative  independence  for  Ireland.  In 
1798.  Protestant  Ulsterites  did  some  of  the  best  fighting  for  the  rebel  cause. 
When  the  Ulster  Protestants  brotherhood  with  Britain  was  140  years  closer 
than  it  is  to-day  the  chief  question  in  Ulster  was  the  independence  of  Ireland. 
Since  those  days  there  has  been  an  apostolic  succession  of  Ulster  Protestants  to 
lead  the  national  cause  in  Ireland.  But.  nevertheless,  in  1914  Lord  London- 
derry and  kindred  peers,  with  certain  among  the  manifestly  prosperous  in 
lister,  pledged  themselves  by  covenant  to  resist  partial  legislative  independ- 
ence (home  rule)  for  Ireland,  set  up  an  Ulster  provisional  government  in  Bel- 
fast:, raised  a  volunteer  corps  to  support  that  government,  and  thus  asserted 
rheir  right  to  rule  Ireland  on  behalf  of  the  Empire. 

"  I  say  here  solemnly,"  announced  one  Ulster  Loyalist  who,  in  1916  was  re- 
warded with  the  position  of  Solicitor  General  of  Ireland.  "  that  the  day  England 
casts  me  off  1  will  say.  '  England  !  1  will  laugh  at  your  calamity.  I  will  mock 
when  your  fear  cometh.'  "  (Belfast.  May  23.  1913.)  And  another  noteworthy 
Ulster  Loyalist  wrote  in  the  Irish  Churchman  (November.  1913)  : 

"  It  may  not  be  known  to  the  rank  and  file  of  Unionists  that  we  have  the  offer 
of  aid  from  a  powerful  Continental  monarch,  who.  it'  Home  Rule  is  forced  on 
the  Protestants  of  Ireland,  is  prepared  to  send  an  army  sufficient  to  release 
England  of  any  further  trouble  in  Ireland  by  attaching  it  to  his  dominion, 
believing,  as  he  does,  that  if  our  King  breaks  his  coronation  oath  by  signing  the 
Home  Rule  bill,  he  will,  by  so  doing,  have  forfeited  his  claim  to  rule  Ireland. 
And  should  our  King  sign  the  Home  Rule  bill,  the  Protestants  of  Ireland  will 
welcome  this  Continental  deliverer  as  their  forefathers  under  similar  circum- 
stances did  once  before." 

So  some  of  the  prosperous  lister  Royalists  seemed  determined  to  maintain 
their  sway  in  Ireland,  even  at  the  cost  of  transferring  their  loyalty  from 
England. 

To  rouse  the  lister  Royalists,  when  Home  Rule  appeared  imminent,  the 
Rt.  Hon.  Walter  Long,  M.  P.,  came  from  London  to  exhort  them  u  to  defend 
themselves  by  their  own  right  arms  and  with  their  own  stout  hearts"  (New- 
townards.  September  26.  1912).  Sir  F.  E.  Smith,  M.  P.,  also  came  from  London 
with  the  cry  of  "To  your  tents,  o  Israel:'*  ( Bally ela re,  September  20.  1913). 
And  Sir  Edward  Carson,  with  his  lieutenant.  Captain  Craig,  proclaimed  that  the 
Ulsterites  "  would  fight  to  the  last  ditch,  to  the  last  man."  The  distinguished 
Ulster  Protestant  to  whom  was  deputed  the  task  of  writing  the  life  of  ('arson 
states : 

"The  young  men  of  Ulster  :::  *  *  were  not  prepared  to  die  in  any  ditch, 
first  or  last,  in  order  to  prevent  the  enactment  of  the  Home  Rule  bill,  and  a 
reputable  number  of  them  were  positively  prepared  to  fight  for  its  passage. 
Intimidation,  ranging  from  threats  of  social  ostracism  to  threats  of  dismissal 
from  employment,  was  used  to  induce  them  to  sign  the  covenant  or  join  the 
Ulster  Volunteers.  There  was  talk  of  boycotting  all  Protestant  Home  Rulers, 
and  there  was  an  outburst  of  ill  will  among  men  who  had  previously  been  on 
good  terms.  There  were  shameful  scenes  of  violence  in  the  shipyards,  where 
gangs  of  infuriated  Orange  louts  attacked  isolated  Catholic  or  Protestant  Home 
Rulers  and  subjected  them  to  acts  of  outrage  and  brutality  which  can  not  be 
fitly  described.  ("Sir  Edward  Carson."  by  St.  John  G.  Ervine,  p.  56.)  None 
of  the  business  men  of  Ulster,  old  or  young,  had  any  taste  for  rebellion.  They 
certainly  had  not  the  appetite  for  insurrection  that  their  fathers  had  in  1798." 
(Loc.  cit.,  p.  57.) 

No  matter  how  it  was  in  Ulster,  there  was  no  doubt  of  the  feeling  in 
England,  where  the  following  covenant  was  widely  circulated  for  signature: 

"  I.  shall  hold  myself  justified  in  taking  or  supporting  any 

action  that  may  be  effective  to  prevent  it  (the  Home  Rule  act)  being  put  into 


118 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


operation,  and  more  particularly  1<>  prevent  the  armed  forces  of  the  Crown  being 
used  to  deprive  the  people  Of  Ulster  of  their  rights  as  citizens  of  the  United 
Kingdom." 

Subscriptions  were  soughl  In  England  to  supporl  any  action  thai  might  be 
effective.  Long  lists  of  signers  and  subscribers  appeared  at  frequent  Intervals 
in  the  London  Times  and  Morning  Lost  during  the  spring  and  summer  of  L91  1. 
The  lists  comprised  the  names  of  Dukes  like  Bedford,  of  Earls  Like  Denbigh,  of 
Bishops  Like  Boyd  Carpenter,  of  Barons,  Baronets,  Knights,  and  lesser  person- 
ages; Of  generals  such  as  Roberts,  of  admirals  such  as  Beresford,  and  of  their 
subordinates  in  the  military  and  naval  services;  of  financiers  and  of  others  with 
industrial  and  political  purpose,  or  with  social  ambition.  Sir  Edward  Carson, 
who  is  not  an  ristcrman,  who  lias  no  discoverable  relatives  in  Ulster,  who  never 
represented  any  Lister  constituency,  and  who  was  Solicitor  General  for  England 
from  1900  to  1906,  was  chosen  to  head  the  Loyalists  of  Ulster.  Under  him  was 
an  Englishman,  General  Richardson.  Another  Englishman.  Sir  F.  E.  Smith, 
came  over  to  act  as  galloper  to  Carson.  Retired  English  officers  drilled  the 
Carson  arm.  General  Sir  Henry  Wilson,  who  is  now  head  of  the  British  War 
Office,  organized  it.  Generals  French  and  Gough,  in  command  of  the  British 
forces  at  Curragh,  resigned,  or  threatened  to  resign,  with  the  officers  of  their 
command,  if  called  upon  by  the  British  Government  to  march  against  their 
fellow  officers,  Protestants  and  Britishers,  of  the  Carson  army.  Berlin  dis- 
patches (March  31,  11)14)  informed  the  world  that  50,000  rifles  and  1,000,000 
rounds  of  ammunition,  "valued  at  £800,009,"  had  been  shipped  from  Hamburg 
on  March  20.  "It  is  assumed  that  the  rifles  are  for  Ulster,"  said  the  London 
Times  of  April  1.  The  Funny,  with  the  rifles  aboard,  was  soon  reported  as 
passing  through  the  Kiel  Canal.  On  April  '21  the  Times  was  able  to  announce 
that  the  Fanny,  having  successfully  eluded  the  entire  and  forewarned  British 
navy,  had  peacefully  landed  its  munitions  in  Lister  and  peacefully  departed. 
Among  British  politicians  Lord  Milner,  Lord  Robert  Cecil,  and  all  prominent 
Imperialists  and  Unionists  signed  the  covenant.  The  people  of  Ulster,  declared 
the  Rt.  Hon.  Joynson  Hicks.  M.  I'.,  at  Warrington,  England,  on  December  6, 
1913,  had  behind  them  the  Unionist  party.  Behind  them  was  the  God  of  battles. 
In  His  name  and  their  uame,  lie  said  to  the  Prime  Minister,  "Let  your  armies 
and  batteries  tire.  Fire  if  you  dare.  Fire  and  be  damned."  An  English  peer, 
Lord  Willoughby  de  Broke  (Norwich.  November  13,  1913).  publicly  announced: 
*•  We  are  enlisting,  enrolling,  and  arming  a  considerable  force  of  volunteers  who 
are  going  to  proceed  to  Ulster  to  reinforce  the  ranks  of  Captain  Craig  and  bis 
brave  men  when  the  time  comes." 

With  a  pure  and  avowed  passion  to  liberate  from  pending  partial  Irish  rule 
their  brothers  in  Ulster,  their  Protestant  coreligionists,  their  fellow  citizens  in 
the  United  Kingdom,  their  coheirs  in  the  British  Empire,  the  imperial  aris- 
tocracy, the  imperial  army,  the  imperial  navy,  and  the  imperial  politicians 
of  England,  fomented  in  Ireland  the  act  of  revolution,  and.  in  England,  publicly 
aided  and  abetted  it.  And  British  "jurists,  professors,  editors,  statesmen, 
warriors,  and  even  scientists  were  prolific  in  finding  reasons  for  the  act 
before  it  was  committed." 

The  British  imperialists  who  organized  Carsonism  had  previously  been  busy 
in  the  Boer  War,  in  the  liberation  of  Protestant  Britishers  from  the  thrall  of 
Protestant  Burghers.  According  to  the  Englishman,  Mr.  H.  G.  Wells,  "that 
sort  of  British  nationalism  that  is  subsidized  by  rich  Tories,  international 
financiers,  and  Ulster  lawyers  who  are  neither  good  Irish  nor  good  English, 
where  patriotism  is  really  'Britain  for  the  British  exploiter/"  is  "sham  na- 
tionalism'' (New  Republic,  November  23.  1918),  A  home  rule  Ireland  would 
have  been  an  Ireland  without  economic  or  judicial  or  political  or  any  other  inde- 
pendence, an  Ireland  more  subject  to  Britain  than  is  Canada  or  any  of  Britain's 
self-governing  dominions.  Hence  the  avowed  concern  for  the  religious,  na- 
tional, and  imperial  rights  of  the  people  of  Ulster,  which  was  used  to  sanctify 
British  designs  in  Ireland,  scarcely  disguises  the  fact  that  a  most  unjust  and 
J  pernicious  enterprise  was  undertaken  in  England  to  support  in  Ireland  a  revo- 
lution without  legitimate  motive. 

It  may  be  recalled  that  in  1848  Bismarck,  in  the  Reichstag,  characterized 
the  war  of  that  year  in  Schleswig-Holstein,  fomented  by  the  German  States, 
as  "  a  most  unjust,  frivolous,  and  i^eridcious  enterprise,  undertaken  to  support 
a  revolution  without  legitimate  motive."  But  he  subsequently  planned  his  auto- 
cratic German  Empire  and  in  the  meantime  Denmark's  King  had  bestowed  a 
democratic  constitution  on  the  Danish  people.  Bismarck  in  1862  founded  his 
first  remonstrances  to  the  Danish  Government  explicitly  upon  its  too  demo- 


119 


-  /  r.-ernporary  writer  stated  CYarnhagen  von 
u  438) :  "  What  Austria  and  Prussia  seek  at  the 
recar  '.  "    tie  •  ;      .    :  -  . 

-Ian    &"  tie  ar.ti-'  rerm  •-_  mini-rry  Oocen- 
a  reactionary  one.    Tku  is  rl-  r      of  dr-  mat- 
er:.-, lism.  -  with  -le  fear   :r  aorlre 
d  Bismarck  to  say  to  himself,  as  he  confessed 


.m:er:  -.>m.  :  zetler 

lie.  was  the  real  and 

•D..2T-  Bonar  Law.  an.i 
:he  British  imperial- 
e  Boer  War  an*  I  the 
ice  a  Liberal-Labor- 
emd  ''tis  ami  zovem- 
»wer  of  labor  unions, 
eotde.  -2-1  disestab- 


which  was  safely  accomplished.  ~  For  good  or  for  eviL~  wrote  In  -lese  days 
SSr  F.  EL  Smith,  the  future  Carson  galloper,  the  future  Attorney  General  of 
l&^fanri  ~  we  are  governed  by  a  democracy.  The  apparent  tendency  is  to 
extend  rarl-r  "22-  to  restrict  Tie  repadar  ---'mirac-rer  of  "2?  _v,v,-rnment-  This 
counli>  will  remain  democratic  unless  the  tendency  *  *  *  be  arrested  by 
errfl  convulsions ~  h ~ Rights  of  Otuenshipd"  p.  22*.  The  imperialists  failed 
by  constitutional  means  to  control  this  tendency  in  two  successive  electlona* 
mi  thin  one  year.  They  had  lost  the  power  to  veto  the  will  of  the  people  in 
the  Heise  -  Lords:  22  making  tie  1  22— rile  ml  bodi  2  eo-aslon  and 
an  excuse,  they  provoked  errfl  convulsions  in  Ireland,  and  conveyed  that  veto 
nower  safelv  to  a  chanel  of  ease  in  I  Ister  where  thev  created  Oarsonism  to  be 
its  armed  rtard.  Tie-  -el:  tie  :m:erld.  army  —A  22"  *o  tint  •  mirrary 
power  opposed  the  enforcement  of  a  statute  of  the  democratic  government  of 
Britain.  "The  Government  which  gave  the  order  *  *  *  to  enforce  the 
law  in  Ulster  would  run  a  -Teat  risk:  of  heinz  lynched  in  London.""  announced 
the  leader  of  the  Unionist  party.  Mr.  Bonar  Law  f  London.  June  IS.  1912  K  a 
lint  to  Incite  that  mob  and  to  terrorize  its  indicated  victims-  The  Kt.  Hon. 
Jbynson  Hicks.  II.  P_  daring  and  damning,  in  the  name  of  the  God  of  battles 
and  e£  tie  rmoms:  Parry,  tie  dem>:-ratic-  -o-ernmen:  A  England.  d:^l:^ed 
the  forces  supporting  Ms  leader.  And  the  armed  volunteers  raised  in  En  aland 
by  L«>rd  Wfllonghby  de  Broke  likewise  effectively  tended  to  restrict  the  popular 
character  of  government  in  England.  The  British  incentives  to  Carsonism 
—■ire  2::    2.7  tie  2-1. 2.;~   a-:  7 :  d-^ra:  neeils  of  tniper:  1dm  in  Ireland, 

The  annexationist  maxim  in  the  days  of  Frederick  the  Great  was :  Seize 
first  and  plenty  of  lawyers  wfll  justify  afterwards.*"  But  with  the  develop- 
ment of  the  ~  Christian  Science of  war.  war  ceased  to  be  the  pursuit  of  an 
exclusive  military  caste  and  teoame  instead  a  national  din:-:  m.  Hence.  to 
unify  and  strengthen  the  national  will  to  war  the  German  leaders,  mammn  2  to 
ml  tleir  ternm-  re  ta-nmied  a  steals  :  -  tie  m '  r-;d  222  sentimental  feelnzs 
of  the  German  people.  Thus,  before  he  proceeded  to  the  conquest  of  Sehleswig- 
Holsielm  Bismar  :>    reared  2  torn    :   dalm  to  tie      '  eted  terrimr-   :n  tie 


120 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


has  lost  his  reason;  and  the  third  is  myself,  but  I  have  unfortunately  forgotten 
it."  When  the  time  approached  for  the  annexation  of  Alsace-Lorraine  German 
"  jurists,  professors,  editors,  statesmen,  warriors,  and  even  scientists  were  pro- 
lific in  finding  reasons  for  the  act  before  it  was  committed."  (Hazen,  loc.  cit., 
p.  78).  Ancient  Allaman  colonizations  were  recalled;  the  descendants  of  the 
original  Teutonic  colonists  were  identified  as  fellow  Germans  enslaved  in 
France  by  the  Treaty  of  Westphalia  (1648)  and  marked  down  for  liberation, 
for  restoration  to  the  religous,  national,  and  prospective  imperial  rights  of  Ger- 
man citizens.  And  to  silence  any  lingering  scruple  Treitschke  taught :  "  The 
Germans  know  how  to  govern  the  Alsatians  better  than  the  Alsatians  do  them- 
selves." 

The  complexity  and  obscurity  of  these  German  national  issues  recently 
vanished.  A  selectively  enlightened  world  suddenly  learned  to  appreciate  at  its 
true  value  this  conventional  plea  of  religious,  national,  and  imperial  rights  of 
German  colonists  in  coveted  lands,  and  to  see,  at  last,  that  there  never  was 
adequate  reason  to  regard  that  plea  as  other  than  a  most  unjust,  frivolous, 
and  pernicious  subterfuge  of  German  Imperialism.  The  German  Imperialist 
demonstrably  had  both  in  Schleswig-Holstein  and  in  Alsace-Lorraine  no  pur- 
pose distinguishable  from  that  which  the  British  Imperialist  still  has  in  Ire- 
land, and  still  makes  complex  and  obscure  by  the  stereotyped  plea  of  religious, 
national,  and  imperial  rights  of  British  colonists  in  Ulster.  The  world  to-day 
has  just  paid  the  price  of  refusal  to  see  as  they  were  the  things  of  yesterday. 
Will  the  world  to-morrow  need  likewise  to  pay  the  price  of  refusal  to  see  as 
they  are  the  things  of  to-day? 

So  long  as  England  governs  [reland,  the  privileged,  the  parasitic,  and  the 
professional  Loyalists  will  exercise  their  religions,  national,  and  imperial  right 
to  administer,  on  behalf  of  the  Empire,  the  satrapy  of  Ireland.  So  long  as 
these  Loyalists  control  in  Ireland  the  avenues  of  educational,  economic,  and 
social  preferment,  they  will  find  adherents  among  the  ignorant  and  sophisticated, 
the  needy  and  covetous,  the  servile  and  ambitious.  The  number  and  devotion 
of  such  adherents  were  revealed  in  the  last  great  British  recruiting  campaign,  in 
which  all  the  arts  of  persuasion  and  menace,  intensively  applied  for  six  months, 
brought  forth  from  Belfast  and  all  Ulster  less  than  10.000  Loyalists  to  save  the 
Empire — that  is,  England — in  the  hour  of  its  extremity.  Fifty  thousand  Ameri- 
can Loyalists  opposed  Washington,  yet  America  became  a  great  and  harmonious 
nation.  Two  million  German  Loyalists  from  Masaryk's  Ulster  quota  in  the  newly 
created  nation  of  Czectio-Slovakia.  Vet  the  negligible  number  of  Irish  Loyalists, 
in  a  world  where  the  principle  of  majority  rule  is  the  foundation  of  all  democ- 
racy, is  allowed  to  impose  for  their  Imperial  masters  an  insuperable  veto  to 
•■  the  government  of  Ireland  by  the  consent  of  the  governed." 

In  the  negotiation  of  the  Home  Rule  Act  and  in  the  deliberations  of  the 
Lloyd  George  convention,  the  National  leaders  of  Ireland  manifested  for  the 
religious  and  civil  rights  of  the  Loyalist  minority  a  solicitude  that  transcends 
justice,  and  that  may  worthily  serve  as  an  example  to  the  majority  rulers  of 
newly  freed  Stales.  Outside  of  its  incubation  place  in  Ulster,  antagonism  of 
Catholic  to  Protestant,  of  Irishman  to  Irishman,  does  not  exist  in  Ireland. 
Major  William  Redmond,  M.  I'..  in  his  last  speech  to  the  British  House  of 
Commons,  before  he  went  to  his  grave  in  Flanders,  irrefutably  proved  the 
mutual  esteem  and  affection  that  united  the  vast  armies  of  Irish  soldiers  in 
the  trenches  of  France.  Dissension  in  Ireland  is  incomparably  less  than  dissen- 
sion in  England,  or  France,  or  Italy;  and  as  it  was  in  America  in  1770,  it  is  in 
Ireland  to-day  the  work  of  those  who  desire  to  divide  and  rule. 

Washington  characterized  the  American  precursors  of  the  Carson  family  as 
''abominable  pests  of  society"  and  treated  them  as  traitors.  The  Virginia 
Hotise  of  Delegates  stigmatized  them  as  ''vicious  citizens  against  whom 
vigorous  measures  should  be  taken."  and  such  measures  were  taken.  Bis- 
marck replied,  when  asked  what  he  meant  to  do  with  his  exalted  analogue  of 
('arson  in  Sschlexw  in-Hol<tein  :  "'It  is  the  right  of  him  who  rears  a  cockerel  to 
wring  its  neck,"  and  that  Carson  was  heard  no  more.  The  right  of  England 
to  her  Carson,  no  Irishman  will  care  to  contest. 

As  soon  as  the  disrupting  force  of  dual  allegiance  ceases  to  act  In  Ireland, 
as  soon  as  Ireland  is  governed  only  by  the  consent  of  the  governed,  Ulsterite 
will  vie  with  non-Ulsterite  in  salutary  competition  to  end  the  present  exploita- 
tion of  the  poor,  the  ignorant,  the  credulous,  and  the  bigoted,  to  eradicate 
the  existing  impieties  of  the  social  system  of  Ireland,  and  to  make  all  men 
equal  before  the  law;  that  selfish  rights  may  be  displaced  by  national  duties, 
and  that  the  life  of  everyone  may  conform  to  the  first  and  greatest  of  the  laws 


121 


tike  Allied  Powers.    *lciauflei  was  loath  to. 

 -  :       T^:r_~:_  -----  -  mill 7  ----- 

to  help  to  end  all  war.   So  to  IBM 
the  Engnsh  IGinster.  Pitt,  that  the  pen  of  Europe 
i*r.:.7  ^-^vi-w   -  ■  ir_      •  - 1- 


jaMi—i  nBliiiiiMii  or  the  ■nhrm  which  ■often  drive 
to  whom  power  is  rested."  ~  H~ 
foundations  to  liberty  should,  on  the 
of  Nations,  all  the  member*  of 

of  each,  to  order  that  there  aright  be  no  -future  attempts  to 
the  general  traaqaillity  ~  « Phillip*.  -The  Confederation  of  Europe." 
pp.  34-38).  Ai  That  time  Ireland  had  tost  passed  through  the  rebellion  of  179a 
the  aale  of  the  Irish  Parliament  by  Castiereagh  to  England  (18001  and  the 

TV.*.-  ■  Z.    -Z   l*f.&       ±Z~    ZtWL  ~  i>  -r 

of  -  win?  Kbeny.~   Bat  withont  either  applying  tins  test  or 

of  Fn^limri  rim  esilj  as  the  ficedom  of  Ireland 

!r_  "I-  •'.•T^rrlr-:—      >"ii«- Wi^:  :1~  :^>sir.  '^  _i 
of  Ireland  renamed  as  a  symbol  of 

a'  ~ 

r-2 -        :*n  tv.I.t.  if  '.  »-vtL  '-  z.-t:k*  r-Ln:^ 

far  peace;  in  one  word  the  return  of  the  Golden  Age'  ICcjuU.  "Congress  of 
Vienna.""  ouoted  by  Upson.  "Europe  in  the  Nineteenth  Century.'"'  p.  Bat 
- *jT*l-  Er.-i.-  ■L^r-e-I  :r_l-  — It!  ir_  :r__rj>*L>:-T  -iz.-:  c ;e  -  t±* 

of  the  war.  It  is  dear  that  On?  English  Minister  meant  that  only  Fiance 
-  tzzziTr  &-~~zz.*".  :i  Zzz  :*  :j  fr^si 

ptojetla  of  bum  ■mlin     al  and  a  anal  ion  * "  IXipson.  lor.  eit_  p.  212). 

Ti-i-  P-ii-  ';.::_-T-s-  z_v.  ^.  ~  .^zzz.,    it_:  z^zz  z.  :t.'£~c  l.iJr^T^ZL. 

zzzzz_z  i-.T  Gzv  -  I T~~J.z*z      zz^-zlzizzs        ^::r>-  i=  •  i^r^iir-^ 
tween  great  Powers  of  little  ratoe  for  the  fatare  balance  and  preservation  of 
~jL?  z  Zzt       11:   .  lIt-titi : r_?  :~         :.:sa=s£       zz  zzz* 

lent  inmortant  States.    No  art  of 

■■■T-i~T  «r  -  r  ^n-rrsil  -       — li  ±  nii±:  ~:  - 

or  leasame  it  as  to  ds*  z-.zrzz -  ~l«  :■: . :       F : :         •  -I; 
the  simeiilj  of  tin?  participants  was  that  given,  pettotue.  by  France  in 


e  lost  count  of  its  unaing*.  In  eiery  truce  the  hopeful  hare  seen  again 
of  Isaiasw.  of  a  world  united  in  peace:  and  to  erery  fresh  *l^flyTjlr  of 
hare  been  lured  to  death  by  rulers  who  puna iweil  to 
with  their  sword.  The  plain  ptoplc  of  to-day  to  the  Alfied  no 
-Jl-  Azzj-t.-.tcZ.  Tiz.sz-  >:  :••  Iz.    -7  z~z  zliz  zl*  =-77^11:7  -±  rzriz 

•  -  <    :  :    •-  z:..-'.r  -zz.  '..  ■         ~z.z  -zzziZ  nr. '  i.:"..r.^  zzisLz  ~±*=sr>rt-j 

''.7  rr— :  r:  z.  zzz-  : :  ■:  :  c  :  zz^zztz  zzzz  ?  ~ :ii  -Jli:  ler_.:^f  :  r±.  fr^- 
j^c-r-lrs  f  "Ji-  —  r'.i  —zzzzz  zzlz-  '.zz  v z-  zzz-zzzz*t-  z  i  L>ir:r  :r 
rkms.  a  League  which  would  exercise  conanon  political  sovereignty  anlrlj  to 
the  end  that  war  should  forever  cease.  They  hare  woo  the  war. 
yet  to  he  won  or  3o«t_  Ix«nnnating  the  Peace  Conference  are  the 
of  America  and  the  Government  of  the  British  Empire.  AuKrica^  President 
hllotiL  the  war.  at  the  acceptance  of  war,  during  tine  war.  and  since  the 
»  Piiilion  of  hostilities  has  uueajuivocany  stated  his  purpose  to  seek  the 
efiurinatfon  of  war.  Plain  peoples  of  the  world  believe  to  him.  trust  in 
t«unr  four  for  him.  lest,  like  *w™nW  I  of  Russia,  h 
that  uuTnons.  of  lives  must  be  muinili  nd  again  to 
the  road  to  universal  peace.  And  the  basis  of  their  fear  is  the 


122 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  task  of  the  conferring  Governments  is  to  restore  and  to  make  permanent 
the  peaceful  equilibrium  of  the  world,  in  the  past  England  has  been  the  center 
of  that  equilibrium,  which  when  disturbed  by  Spain,  Holland.  France,  or  Ger- 
many led  Britain  to  war.  and  the  disturbing  elements  wore  thereby  reduced 
to  balanced  proportions,  In  leagues,  alliances, 'ententes,  and  associations.  Eng- 
land, conqueror  of  Africa.  Palestine.  Arabia,  Persia,  and  the  German  colonics; 
and  possessor  of  Ireland,  Canada,  Newfoundland,  the  West  indies.  Australia, 
New  Zealand,  India,  Ceylon,  and  Burmah,  has  now  become  empress  of  the  world. 
,Ye1  ii  is  actually  proposed  that  she  grant  self-determination  to  the  world  and 
forego  her  supremacy  in  favor  of  a  league  of  which  the  component  States,  small 
and  great,  shall  enjoy  equality* with  her  before  the  law  of  nations.  In  this 
League  each  nation  will  arm  for  domestic  order  only,  and  all  will  contribute 
to  a  common  force  that  will  guarantee  the  world's  peace.  The  unit  of  State 
proposed  for  the  league  is  called  a  nation.  It  is  implicit  in  the  idea  of  a  unit 
that  it  should  he  Indivisible,  self-supportng,  and  able  to  sustain  its  share  of  the 
common  burden.  This  unit  has  been  further  qualified  as  constituted  by  people 
"governed  only  by  the  consent  of  the  governed." 

Among  the  nations  of  the  world  the  Irish  are  unsurpassed  in  the  sum  of  their 
distinguishing  characters  of  speech,  race,  customs,  and  traditions.  They  take 
historical  precedence  over  all  nations,  except  the  nations  of  Greece  and  Italy; 
they  inhabit  a  country  unique  in  its  geographical  separateness  from  all  others 
and  greater  in  area  than  Greece,  Serbia,  Switzerland,  Denmark.  Holland,  or 
Belgium.  Ireland  contains  more  people  than  Greece,  Switzerland.  Finland, 
Serbia,  Denmark,  or  Norway.  Unless  the  word  nation  has  lost  its  traditional 
significance  and  has  hecome  a  term  of  opprobrium  conferred  only  upon  peoples 
hitherto  lighting  in  the  service  of  the  Central  Empires,  Ireland  is  a  nation. 
The  nationhood  of  Ireland  is  not  dependent  upon  admission  to  any  league  of 
Towers.  A  league  avowedly  founded  on  nationhood  undermines  its  own  basis 
by  the  exclusion  of  Ireland;  and  its  selective  character  makes  of  it  merely  a 
league  of  rulers,  an  entangling  alliance  to  embroil  peaceful  members  in  all  the 
wars  on  the  seven  seas. 

In  less  than  a  century,  Ireland,  in  addition  to  paying  out  of  her  own  taxes  the 
whole  of  her  own  cost,  has  been  made  to  pay  to  the  maintenance  of  the  imperial 
army  and  navy  of  England  a  sum  of  £325,000,000  ($1,725,000,000)  (Mr.  John 
Redmond,  House  of  Commons.  April  11,  1912.)  Ireland's  annual  foreign  trade, 
almost  exclusively  monopolized  by  England,  exceeds  that  of  Switzerland.  Swe- 
den. Norway,  Finland.  Portugal,  Greece,  or  Serbia,  and  almost  equals  the  for- 
eign trade  of  Denmark  (Stateman's  Year  Book.  1913).  The  exclusion  of  a  great 
and  historic  nation,  which  is  an  indivisible  State  unit,  which  even  under  pres- 
ent conditions  is  able  to  pay  the  sum  exacted  to  support  the  one  Imperial  navy  of 
the  world,  and  which  has  a  yearly  foreign  trade  of  $737,750,000.  would  weaken 
the  stability  of  any  aggregation  of  less  compact  States,  increase  the  pro  rata 
burden  borne  by  the  selected  members  for  the  support  of  the  League,  and  de- 
prive the  League  of  a  considerable  part  of  the  world's  commerce. 

The  inclusion  of  Ireland  as  a  nation  would  mean  the  loss  to  England  of  her 
most  treasured  possession.  True,  a  war  has  just  been  fought  in  which  English 
statesmen  from  Sir  Edward  Grey  to  Mr.  Lloyd  George  have  avowed  their  essen- 
tial purpose  to  be  the  freedom  of  small  nations.  But  in  a  war  between  empires 
a  subject  nation  forms  a  part  where  each  empire  is  vulnerable,  and  where  the 
victor  can  conveniently  disarticulate  the  vanquished.  A  subject  nation,  such  as 
Czechoslovakia,  that  has  the  happiness  to  have  been  a  component  part  of  a  de- 
feated and  dismembered  empire,  thereby  receives  at  least  titular  freedom.  A 
subject  nation  such  as  Ireland,  that  has  the  misfortune  not  to  have  been  a  com- 
ponent part  of  the  conquered  Empire,  receives  the  treatment  Ireland  is  now 
receiving.  To  give  moral  sanction  to  the  freeing  of  Poles.  Czecho-Slovaks,  and 
other  peoples  lately  subject  to  Germany  or  Austria,  either  the  victorious  Empire 
itself  must  free  Ireland  or  else  those  other  nations  which  associated  themselves 
with  England  and  were  privileged  to  devote  their  lives,  their  honor,  and  all  they 
were  and  had  to  the  avowed  purpose  of  the  war.  must  decree  the  freedom  of 
Ireland  from  England,  as  in  1S31  the  freedom  of  Belgium  from  Holland  was 
decreed.  In  any  event,  the  exclusion  of  Ireland  must  mean  the  exclusion  of 
England,  too,  from  a  league  of  free  peoples,  of  peoples  "  governed  only  by  the 
consent  of  the  governed."  For  an  England  dragging  in  chains  the  nation  of 
Ireland  "  could  not  he  trusted  to  keep  faith  within  the  League  or  to  observe 
its  covenants." 

Besides  moral  sanction,  a  League  of  Nations  will  need  the  sanction  of  force. 
"  It  will  be  ahsolutely  necessary  that  a  force  be  created,  as  a  guarantor  of 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


123 


The  permanency  of  the  settlement  so  much  greater  than  the  force  of  any 
nation  now  engaged  in  any  alliance  hitherto  formed  or  projected,  that  no 
nation,  no  probable  combination  of  nations,  could  face  or  withstand  it." 
(January  22,  1917,  "  Message  to  the  Senate.") 

Force  can  be  created,  but  it  can  not  be  thriftily  or  effectively  applied  except 
through  the  control  of  strategic  bases.  Concerning  Ireland  as  a  base,  the 
British  "  Navy  League  " — "  from  which  the  German  Navy  League  drew  its 
impulse"  (Mahan,  "America's  Interest  in  International  Conditions,"  p.  171)  — 
in  a  manifesto  issued  on  January  10.  1918,  stated: 

"  Before  the  great  war  the  security  of  the  Irish  ports  was  wrongly  regarded 
by  the  majority  of  the  British  people  as  a  partisan  British  interest.  The 
scales  fell  from  our  eyes  after  war  broke  out.  A  clear  vision  of  the  sacrifices 
of  great  and  small  nations  fighting  for  freedom  revealed  the  relation  between 
Ireland  and  world  trade.  The  strategic  unity  of  the  British  Isles  is  a  world 
problem,  not  merely  a  British  interest.  The  trade  of  Europe  with  Canada, 
the  United  States,  the  West  Indies,  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  the  Panama  Canal, 
the  Caribbean  Sea.  all  the  Republics  of  South  America,  all  the  States  of  the 
Australian  Commonwealth.  New  Zealand,  China,  Japan,  Russia  in  the  Pacific. 
India.  Ceylon,  and  Africa  are  dependent  directly  upon  the  control  of  Irish 
seaports  and  the  communications  behind  them.  The  British  people  before 
the  war  were  mistaken  in  regarding  Queenstown.  Bantry  Bay,  Valencia,  and 
Lough  Swilly  as  merely  British  interests.  Ireland  has  eighteen  harbors,  five 
of  them  first  class.  The  best  of  them  face  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  which  floats 
the  trade  of  the  world.  Friendly  naval  control  of  Irish  harbors  by  free  nations 
is  essential  to  the  freedom  of  the  world.  The  ocean  of  the  air,  the  surface  of 
the  sea.  and  underwater  attack  or  defense  will  be  controlled  *  *  *  from 
Irish  Western  ports." 

Even  if  the  League  create  a  navy  so  large  that  the  burden  of  its  support 
would  strain  the  loyalty  of  the  members,  the  strategic  position  of  Japan  with 
her  ally  England,  acting  from  Ireland  as  a  base,  would  enable  these  Powers 
together  to  defy  any  force  that  the  League  might  bring  against  them.  So  long 
as  Ireland  is  controlled  by  England  the  equilibrium  of  the  world  will  remain 
centered  on  her.  and  a  League  of  Nations  will  exist  at  her  pleasure  as  an 
auxiliary  to  her  purpose.  Ireland  a  "  Heligoland  of  the  Atlantic,  would 
menace  the  Atlantic  coast  of  the  American  Continent  from  Punta  Arenas  in 
Patagonia  to  Quebec.  Therefore  naval  control  of  Ireland  by  a  naval  repre- 
sentative of  the  free  nations  of  the  world  is  essential  to  the  freedom  of  the 
world.  Ireland  is  truly  the  key  of  the  Atlantic,  a  fortress  that  guards  the 
main  trade  routes  of  the  world."    (Loc  cit..  Jan.  10,  1918.) 

A  free  Ireland,  as  is  so  eloquently  and  conclusively  shown  by  the  British 
Navy  League,  is  a  member  essential  to  any  League  of  Nations.  It  is,  indeed, 
the  one  indispensable  member,  the  member  vital  to  the  League,  the  member 
whose  absence  would  leave  undetermined  only  the  moment  of  the  League's 
disintegration,  only  the  name  of  the  Power  which  would  next  dare  to  disturb 
the  possessor  of  Ireland,  the  center  of  the  world's  equilibrium.  Without  a 
free  Ireland,  the  force  of  the  League  can  not  control  the  world  ;  without  such 
controlling  force  there  can  be  no  League  of  Nations ;  without  a  League  of 
Nations  there  can  be  no  permanent  peace;  and  without  permanent  peace  plain 
peoples  have  been  privileged  to  dedicate  their  lives  and  possessions  to  what? 
The  freedom  of  Ireland  will  be  the  sign  of  the  freedom  of  the  world  from  war. 
Is  there  any  guarantee  that  this  sign  will  be  given  to  the  world? 

America,  presuming  that  her  associates  at  least  "  were  as  candid  and  straight- 
forward as  the  momentous  issues  involved  required."  did  not  deem  it  necessary 
"  to  assure  herself  of  the  exact  meaning  of  the  note  of"  acceptance  of  Eng- 
land's Government  before  the  armistice  was  signed.  America  likewise  did  not 
deem  it  necessary  "  in  order  that  there  might  be  no  possibility  of  misunder- 
standing very  solemnly  to  call  the  attention  of"  the  Government  of  England 

to  the  evident  principle  which  runs  through  the  whole  American  program." 
It  is  contained  in  the  "Address  to  Congress"  of  January  8.  "It  is  the  prin- 
ciple of  justice  to  all  peoples  and  nationalities  and  their  right  to  live  on  terms 
of  liberty  and  safety  with  one  another  whether  they  be  strong  or  weak."  Yet 
even  when  the  armistice  was  being  signed  England  was  affirming,  as  through- 
out the  war  England  lias  affirmed,  and  as  she  is  to-day  affirming  by  all  the  ways 
an  autocratic  empire  can  affirm  it.  her  complete  consciousness  of  the  distinct 
national  entity — Ireland.  In  the  Peace  Conference  "the  good  faith  of  any 
discussion  manifestly  depends  upon  the  consent  "  of  his  Britannic  Majesty's 
Government  "  immediately  to  withdraw  its  forces  everywhere  from  the  in- 


124 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


vaded  territory"  of  Ireland:  to  liberate  those  whom  by  deportation  and 
imprisonment  England  lias  recognized  as  the  Leaders  of  the  Irish  nation;  and 
to  permit  the  people  of  Ireland  freely  to  determine  by  plebiscite  the  form  of 
their  government.  No  such  guarantee  of  good  faith  was  required  from,  or 
proffered  by  England;  and  she  reserved  the  question  of  the  freedom  of  the 
seas  for  discussion.  As  it  was  in  ISM.  so  in  1918,  "it  is  clear  thai  Great 
Britain  was  concerned  only  with  an  immediate  and  practical  object,  the  ending 
of  the  war."  The  English  Minister  meant,  that  only  Germany  "should  not.  be 
allowed  to  disturb  the  future  settlement  of  Europe  by  fresh  projects  of 
aggrandizement  and  ambition." 

.lust  us  America  enters  the  Peace  Conference,  Ireland  entered  the  war  without 
guarantees  of  good  faith  from  England.  Ireland  had  no  shipping  vainly  seeking 
passage  through  forbidden  se;is.  The  only  invader  on  Irish  soil  was  England. 
And  Ireland  refused  to  be  terrorized  into  war  by  fear  of  facing  unaided  the 
remote  contingency  of  invasion  by  Germany.  According  to  J.  1.  C.  Clarke, 
480,000  Irishmen  fought  ami  died  for  France  between  1690  and  1792.  The 
only  entry  on  the  other  side  of  the  ledger  was  the  280  Frenchmen  lost  by 
Humbert  in  the  rebellion  of  179$.  Belgium  in  the  83  years  of  her  existence 
had  spared  not  a  man,  a  dollar,  or  an  audible  articulate  thought  for  the  free- 
dom of  Ireland.  If  instead  of  Belgium  and  France,  Ireland  had  been  invaded, 
what  help  would  Ireland  have  received  from  one  or  other  of  these  countries? 
Neither  interest  nor  gratitude  nor  yet  kinship  called  for  a  single  Irishman  to 
tight  in  the  war.  No  power  could  lake,  and  no  power  has  been  able  to  take, 
a  single  Irish  national  to  tight  in  France  against  his  free  will.  But  Irishmen 
thought  that  if  Germany  won  Belgium  would  become  what  they  "mourned 
in  Ireland,  a  nation  in  chains."  'The  light  seemed  to  be  one  of  justice  against 
might  for  the  freedom  of  small  nationalities.  In  such  ;i  fight  "Ireland,"  said 
Professor  T.  M.  Kettle,  who  fell  at  Guincby,  "had  a  duty  not  only  to  herself 
but  to  the  world  *    and  whatever  befell,  the  path  taken  must  be  the 

path  of  honor  and  justice.'"  Concerning  the  number  of  Irishmen  who  took  this 
vouched-for  path  of  duty  before  America  entered  the  war,  Mr.  John  Redmond, 
M.  P.,  wrote  : 

••  Prom  Ireland,  according  to  the  latest  official  statistics,  173,772  Irishmen  are 
sei  ving  in  the  navy  and  army.  *  *  Careful  inquiries  made  through  the 
churches  in  the  North  of  England  and  in  Scotland,  and  from  other  sources, 
show  that,  in  addition,  at  least  150,000  sons  of  the  Irish  race,  most  of  them 
born  in  Ireland,  have  joined  the  colors  in  Great  Britain.  It  is  a  pathetic  cir- 
cumstance that  these  Irishmen  in  non-Irish  regiments  are  forgotten  except 
when  their  names  appear  in  the  casualty  lists." 

Adding  to  these  the  other  young  men  of  Ireland  who,  compelled  by  the 
economic  conditions  at  home  to  seek  elsewhere  the  means  to  exist,  had  emigrated 
to  Canada,  Newfoundland.  Australia,  New  Zealand,  and  South  Africa,  and  who 
had  enlisted  in  their  adopted  countries,  Mi-.  Redmond  estimated  that  there  were 
"more  than  half  a  million  Irishmen  with  the  colors."  ("Ireland  on  the 
Somme,"  London,  1917,  pp.  3-8.)  This  number — 500,000 — represents  about  one- 
tenth  of  the  Irish  born  outside  this  country — and  they  fought  as  volunteers. 
They  took  the  indicated  path  to  justice  and  went  to  war  as  Irish  "  International 
Nationalists;'  believing  that  the  greater  freedom  would  include  the  less.  Their 
number  exceeded  the  volunteers  of  any  other  land ;  proportionately  they  repre- 
sented an  army  of  11,000,000  Americans.  They  went  to  their  graves  in  France 
and  Gallipoli  believing  that  the  Irish  issue  in  its  international  aspect  was  an 
integral  part  of  the  new  international  aspect  of  nil  national  issues,  the  right  to 
government  only  by  the  consent  of  the  governed.  The  Irish  from  their  unassail- 
able position  of  racial  detachment  and  material  disinterestedness  were  the  only 
people  in  the  world  who  could  give  the  Allied  cause  moral  vindication,  and  they 
gave  it  without  requiring  England  to  consent  immediately  to  withdraw  from 
Ireland,  without  fulfilling  the  world  duty  of  obtaining  a  guarantee  that  the  war 
would  be  waged  in  good  faith. 

Graciously  acknowledging  the  belligerent  value  of  this  international  aspect 
of  the  Irish  issue.  Lord  Kitchener,  the  British  War  Lord,  wrote  to  the  Dublin 
Viceregal  Conference  (1915):  "Ireland's  performance  has  been  magnificent." 
"England  is  unworthy  to  kiss  the  hem  of  Ireland's  garment,"  wrote  the  English 
litterateur.  Chesterton,  moved  by.  the  spectacle  of  a  subject  nation  voluntarily 
fighting  for  international  freedom  alongside  its  oppressor.  "Whatever  the 
future  may  have  in  store,  the  British  people  will  never  forget  the  generous 
blood  of  the  sister  nation  which  has  been  shed  on  so  many  hard-fought  battle 
fields."  said  the  London  Daily  Telegraph.  March  18,  101b. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


125 


The  war  report  of  a  subject  nation  in  an  imperial  war  is  published  when  to 
publish  it  is  useful  and  is  altered  or  suppressed  when  necessary  for  the  benefit 
of  the  Empire.  The  significance  of  the  record  may  not  have  varied,  but  the 
accounting  is  in  the  hands  of  the  imperial  bookkeepers ;  there  are  no  auditors ; 
the  report  is  published  by  those  who  compile  it.  for  their  own  ends.  Hence, 
although  England's  gratitude  to  the  sister  nation  of  Ireland  was  still  ringing 
in  men's  ears — although,  too,  the  survivors  of  tbe  500,000  Irish  were  still  fight- 
ing abroad  for  international  freedom,  from  the  day  (Easter,  1910)  when  the 
Irish  felt  compelled  to  wrest  from  England  a  guarantee  of  good  faith,  to  fight 
in  Ireland,  too,  in  the  name  of  right  against  might,  in  the  name  of  the  freedom 
of  small  nationalities,  of  the  cause  of  international  justice — the  war  report  of 
the  Irish  was  "  Pigotted  "  in  the  press  which  England  controlled  throughout  the 
world.  And  a  grateful  England  shot  as  felons  Pearse  and  his  fellow  poets  and 
seers,  condoned  the  murder  of  Sheehy  Skeffington  and  others,  imprisoned  Coun- 
tess Markiewicz,  Professors  MacNeill  and  De  Valera.  and  a  thousand  more, 
hanged  and  libeled  Casement,  placed  an  army  of  occupation  in  Ireland,  put  the 
country  under  martial  law.  and  gave  full  imperial  recognition  to  the  subject 
nation  of  Ireland  before  the  silent  but  comprehending  gaze  of  the  suffering 
people  of  Belgium.  Prior  to  the  revolution  of  1916  there  had  been  lacking  an 
international  standard  by  which  to  test  the  solicitude  of  England  for  the  free- 
dom of  small  nationalities,  a  lack  which  the  revolution  supplied.  Ireland  meas- 
ured England's  avowed  cause  by  that  standard,  and  then  unaided  continued  the 
flight  for  small  nationalities  on  the  Irish  front,  a  front  to  which  the  recent 
armistice  was  not  extended. 

When  America  entered  the  war  the  Irish-born  here  felt  that  President  Wilson 
had  made  holy  again  the  Allied  cause,  had  made  the  Irish  issue  once  more  an 
inalienable  part  of  the  international  aspect  of  all  national  issues.  They  felt 
that  it  was  the  duty  of  everyone  in  America  to  fight  for  the  freedom  of  all,  the 
freedom  for  which  America's  President  had  pledged  his  word.  Cobelligerent 
aliens  who  were  called  in  the  draft  then  possessed  the  right  to  claim  exemption 
as  aliens.  The  following  percentages,  computed  from  the  Provost  Marshal 
,  General's  Report  (Appendix  33a)  show  the  fashion  in  which  this  duty  was 
accepted  by  the  nationals  of  the  several  cobelligerent  aliens.  The  percentages 
of  the  alien  cobelligerents  called  who  waived  exemption  and  were  accepted  are 
as  follows : 

Ireland   30.  4 

Belgium   24.4 

Scotland   24.  2 

England   22.  5 

Wales   22.  0 

Alexander  of  Russia  sought  and  received  no  guarantees  from  England,  and 
experienced  the  Congress  of  Vienna.  Ireland  sought  and  received  no  guaran- 
tees from  England,  and  is  now  the  only  nation  in  the  civilized  world  that  is  still 
being  actively  subjugated  by  an  imperial  power.  America  sought  and  received 
no  guarantees  from  England,  and  the  consequences  are  yet.  unrevealed. 

But  certain  dominant  English  statesmen  now  openly  oppose  the  principles 
they  formerly  loudly  professed  or  tacitly  accepted  and  for  which  this  war  was 
fought.  The  British  Coalition  Government  has  issued  an  election  address 
antagonistic  to  the  Wilson  principles  of  the  new  world  order.  The  Populo 
Romano  (Dec.  4)  publishes  that  Italy  has  joined  England  and  France  in  an 
entente.  The  Allied  Premiers  have  met.  have  secretly  deliberated  and  publicly 
made  announcement  of  their  agreement.  To  at  least  this  extent  plain  people 
are  now  forewarned.  Analogous  anticipatory  secret  deliberations,  from  which 
Russia  was  excluded,  occurred  at  the  end  of  the  Russo-Turkish  war  in  1879, 
but  it  was  only  when  the  Peace  Congress  of  Berlin  was  far  advanced,  and  when 
by  long  preparatory  maneuvering  the  way  had  been  cleared  for  the  announce- 
ment, that  Europe  was  permitted  to  learn  of  the  bargain  made  prior  to  the 
public  Peace  Congress,  the  bargain  by  which  England  in  return  for  the  long- 
coveted  Island  of  Cyprus,  guaranteed  Turkey  virtual  integrity.  Already 
tentative  divisions  of  territory  have  been  publicly  and  authoritatively  sug- 
gested in  the  manner  of  the  Congress  of  Vienna,  in  the  manner  of  the  Congress 
of  Berlin,  America  has  been  party  neither  to  these  anticipatory  deliberations 
nor  to  these  munition  mongers'  suggestions.  Will  America's  President  be  alone 
at  the  Peace  Congress  "  speaking  for  friends  of  humanity  in  every  nation  and 
of  every  program  of  liberty  *  *  *  for  the  silent  mass  of  mankind  every- 
where who  have  as  yet  had  no  place  or  opportunity  to  speak  their  real  hearts 


Serbia   21.  7 

Canada   21.  0 

France   19.  4 

Italy___   1G.  8 


126 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


out  concerning  the  death  and  ruin  they  sec  to  have  come  niton  the  persons 
and  homos  they  hold  most  dear"?  He  Ims  gone  to  uphold  the  principles  and 
policies  Cor  which  he  led  Americans  to  Spend  their  lives,  their  honor,  and 
their  possessions.  The  seclusion  of  serried  cordons  of  armed  guard  may  sur- 
round the  conference;  and  its  diplomacy  may  he  shrouded  by  a  censored  press. 
But  plain  people  everywhere  will  know  how  to  judge  the  President's  progress. 
There  is  one  tested  standard  and  only  one  by  which  the  Allied  cause  may  he 
judged,  a  standard  by  which  every  principle  President  Wilson  has  enunciated 
may  he  measured,  a  standard  by  which  the  present  may  he  weighed  with  the 
past  and  the  future  may  he  estimated,  the  standard  of  Ireland.  Covenants  and 

the  principles  by  which  these  are  arrived  ;it  may  or  may  not  he  open,  and 
diplomacy  may  always  remain,  frankly  hidden  from  the  public  view.  For, 
first,  there  can  he  no  "absolute  freedom  of  the  seas  outside  of  territorial 
waters,  alike  in  peace  and  in  war.*'  without  the  freedom  of  Ireland;  secondly, 
there  can  he  no  "  removal,  so  far  as  is  possihle.  of  all  economic  harriers,"  with- 
out the  freedom  of  Ireland:  thirdly,  there  can  he  no  "adequate  guarantees 
given  and  taken  that  national  armaments  will  he  reduced  to  the  lowest  point 
consistent  with  safety."  without  the  freedom  of  Ireland;  fourthly,  there  can 
he  no  "general  association  of  nations  formed  under  specific  covenants  for  the 
purpose  of  affording  mutual  guarantees  of  political  independence  and  terri- 
torial Integrity  in  great  and  small  States  alike."  without  the  freedom  of  Ire- 
land :  and  lastly,  there  can  he  no  moral  application  of  "the  principle  of  jus- 
tice to  all  peoples  and  nationalities,  and  their  right  to  live  on  equal  terms  of 
liberty  and  safety  with  one  another  whether  they  be  strong  or  weak."  without 
the  freedom  or  Ireland.  "  Unless  this  principle  he  made  its  foundation  no  part 
of  the  structure  of  international  justice  can  stand."  Hence,  by  the  standard  of 
plain  people.  President  Wilson  must  seek  tirst  the  freedom  of  Ireland  and  all 
things  else  shall  he  added  nnto  him. 

Belgium  a  nation  again  is  music  to  Irish  ears.  The  free  soil  of  France 
affords  at  least  a  grave  worthy  of  the  freemen  of  Ireland.  The  liheration  of 
Poland  .nives  gladness  nowhere  greater  than  in  Ireland.  Even  from  the  waters 
of  Babylon,  Ireland  welcomes  the  Jew  to  Zion.  For  Ireland,  though  fated  to 
be  the  symbol  and  shield  of  empire,  has  faith  in  her  freedom.  She  knows  how  " 
to  fight  and  pray,  till  the  day  of  empires  shall  pass,  till  freedom  shall  eoihe  to 
the  latest  of  nations,  shall  come  even  unto  .the  last,  when  an  Ireland  free  shall 
he  given  to  the  peoples  as  a  sign  that  a  message  2.000  years  old,  the  message 
of  peace  and  good-will  on  earth,  has  heen  heard  and  heeded  by  men. 


The  Sinn  Fein  Platform. 

The  Sinn  Fein  Convention  of  1917  met  in  Dublin  in  session  from  October 
24-27.  There  were  I.7O0  delegates  present  from  every  county  in  Ireland.  They 
reported  1,099  clubs  of  Sinn  Fein,  with  a  membership  of  250.000. 

The  following  platform  was  adopted : 

"Article  I.  Whereas  the  people  of  Ireland  never  relinquished  their  claim  to 
separate  nationhood  ;  and 

"  Whereas  the  Provisional  Government  of  the  Irish  Republic  at  Easter.  1910, 
in  the  name  of  the  Irish  people,  and  continuing  the  tight  made  by  previous 
generations,  reasserted  the  inalienable  right  of  the  Irish  nation  to  sovereign 
independence,  and  reaffirmed  the  determination  of  the  Irish  people  to  achieve 
it :  and 

"  Whereas  the  proclamation  of  the  Irish  Republic  at  Easter,  1916,  and  the 
supreme  courage  and  glorious  sacrifices  of  the  men  who  gave  their  lives  to 
maintain  it  have  united  the  people  of  Ireland  under  the  flag  of  the  Irish 
Republic :  Be  it 

"  Resolved,  That  we,  the  delegated  representatives  of  Irish  people,  in  con- 
vention assembled,  hereby  declare  the  following  to  be  the  constitution  of  Sinn 
Fein  : 

"  1.  The  name  of  the  organization  shall  be  Sinn  Fein. 

"2.  Sinn  Fein  aims  at  securing  international  recognition  of  Ireland  as  an 
independent  Irish  Republic.  Having  achieved  that  status  the  Irish  people  may 
by  referendum  freely  choose  their  own  form  of  government. 

"3.  This  object  shall  he  attained  through  the  Sinn  Fein  organization,  which 
shall  in  the  name  of  the  Sovereign  Irish  people  ( a  )  deny  the  right  and  oppose 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


127 


the  will  of  the  British  Parliament,  and  the  British  Crown  or  any  other  foreign 
government  to  legislate  for  Ireland;  (M  make  use  of  any  and  every  means 
available  to  render  impotent  the  power  of  England  to  hold  Ireland  in  subjec- 
tion by  military  force  or  otherwise. 

"  4.  Whereas  no  law,  without  the  authority  and  consent  of  the  Irish  people 
is  or  ever  can  be  binding  on  their  conscience ;  therefore,  in  accordance  with  the 
resolution  of  Sinn  Fein,  adopted  in  the  convention  of  1915,  a  constituent  assembly 
shall  be  convoked,  comprising  persons  chosen  by  Irish  constituencies  as  supreme 
national  authority  to  speak  and  act  in  the  name  of  the  Irish  people,  and  to  de- 
vise and  formulate  measures  for  the  welfare  of  the  whole  people  of  Ireland, 
such  as 

"(A)  The  introduction  of  a  prospective  system  for  Irish  industries  and 
commerce  by  combined  action  of  the  Irish  councils,  urban  councils,  rural 
councils,  poor-law  boards,  harbor  boards,  and  other  bodies  directly  responsible 
to  the  Irish  people ; 

"(B)  The  establishment  and  maintenance  under  the  direction  of  the  National 
Assembly  or  other  authority  approved  by  the  people  of  Ireland,  of  an  Irish  con- 
sular service  for  the  advancement  of  Irish  commerce  and  Irish  interests  gen- 
erally ; 

"(C)  The  reestablishmeut  of  an  Irish  mercantile  marine  to  facilitate  direct 
trading  between  Ireland  and  the  countries  of  Continental  Europe,  America, 
Africa,  and  the  Far  East ; 

"  D)  An  industrial  survey  of  Ireland  and  development  of  its  mineral  re- 
sources under  the  auspices  of  the  National  Assembly  or  other  national  authority 
approved  by  the  people  of  Ireland ; 

"(E)  The  establishment  of  a  national  stock  exchange; 

"(F)  The  creation  of  a  national  civil  service  embracing  all  employees  of 
county  councils,  rural  councils,  poor  law  boards,  harbor  boards,  and  other  bodies 
responsible  to  the  Irish  people  by  the  institution  of  a  common,  national  qualify- 
ing examination  and  local  competitive  examinations,  the  latter  at  the  discretion 
of  the  local  bodies ; 

"(G)  The  establishment  of  Sinn  Fein  courts  of  arbitration  for  the  speedy  and 
satisfactory  adjustment  of  disputes ; 

"(H)  The  development  of  transit  by  railroad  and  water,  and  of  waste  lands 
f»>r  the  national  benefit  by  a  national  authority  approved  by  the  people  of  Ire- 
land ; 

"(I)  The  development  of  the  Irish  Sea  fisheries  by  the  National  Assembly 
or  other  national  authority  approved  by  the  people  of  Ireland ; 

"(J)  The  reform  of  education  to  render  its  basis  national  and  industrial  by 
the  compulsory  teaching  of  the  Irish  language,  Irish  history  and  Irish  agricul- 
ture and  manufacturing  potentialities  in  a  primary  system,  and,  in  addition,  to 
elevate  to  a  position  of  dominance  in  the  university  system  Irish  agriculture 
and  economics ; 

"(K)  The  abolition  of  the  poor-law  system  and  the  substitution  in  its  stead 
of  adequate  out-door  relief  to  the  aged  and  infirm  and  employment  of  the  able- 
bodied  in  the  reclamation  of  waste  lands,  afforestation,  and  other  national  and 
reproductive  works. 

"Article  2.  Where  Irish  resources  are  being  developed  or  where  industries 
exist  Sinn  Feiners  should  make  it  their  business  to  secure  that  workers  are 
paid  living  wages. 

"Article  3.  That  equality  of  men  and  women  in  this  organization  shall  be 
emphasized  in  all  speeches  and  leaflets." 

Mr.  Gallagher.  I  don't  feel  that  I  ought  to  impose  on  the  com- 
mittee any  longer,  and  I  want  to  thank  them  for  the  generous  atten- 
tion which  they  have  accorded  us.  I  have  a  list  of  the  names  of  the 
people  here  who  would  like  to  put  their  remarks  in  the  record. 

Mr.  Rogers.  I  dislike  very  much  that  any  citizen  of  the  United 
States  should  come  here  to  Washington  and  should  be  compelled  to 
go  away  without  having  expressed  his  views,  even  briefly.  I  don't 
know  how  other  members  feel  about  it,  but  my  own  impression  is 
that  we  ought  to  stay  here  and  let  those  gentlemen  express  their 
views. 


128 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Thereupon  it  vyas  agreed  that  the  committee  should  remain  in 
session  until  1  o'clock  p.  m.,  and  us  long  thereafter  as  might  be  neces- 
sary to  hear  other  speakers. 

Kev.  Thomas  J.  Hukton,  of  Philadelphia,  Pa.  The  gentleman 
(Mr.  Fox)  spoke  of  three  Popes.  I  want  to  say  that  the  Irish  Na- 
tion will  not  be  dictated  to  by  anybody,  whether  it  be  a  Pope  or  our 
friend  from  Connecticut.  The  people  of  Ireland  are  free  men  and 
will  vote  for  their  own  form  of  government. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  AUGUSTINE  LONERGAN,  A  REPRESENTA- 
TIVE IN  CONGRESS  FROM  CONNECTICUT. 

Mr.  Lonergan.  J  just  want  to  ask  you  a  question,  if  you  are  willing 
to  express  yourselves  on  the  point,  and  that  is  as  to  whether  or  not 
there  is  any  doubt  in  the  minds  of  any  of  you  gentlemen  as  to  the 
jurisdiction  of  your  committee  and  of  Congress  to  act  on  any  one  of 
the  resolutions  pending  here. 

The  Chairman.  Is  that  an  examination? 

Mr.  Lonergan.  No,  sir. 

The  Chairman.  Have  you  any  doubts? 

Mi-.  Lonergan.  I  have  not. 

The  Chairman.  You  are  satisfied  that  the  body  that  had  the  power 
to  declare  this  Avar,  fight  it  through  to  a  successful  conclusion,  and 
who  must  approve  any  settlement  made  in  France  has  the  power  at 
least  to  suggest  to  those  commissioners? 

Mr.  Lonergan.  That  is  it  exactly.  And  I  haven't  heard  anyone 
touch  upon  the  point. 

The  Chairman.  I  haven't  heard  any  expressions  of  the  committee 
members  that  they  had  any  doubt  of  jurisdiction.  We  would  be 
glad  to  hear  you. 

Mr.  Fox.  May  I  say.  sir.  that  I  haven't  the  slightest  doubt  that 
Congress  has  that  right. 

Mr.  Lonergan.  I  infer  from  the  chairman's  statement  that  the 
gentlemen  of  the  committee  have  no  doubt,  and  there  isn't  any  use 
in  arguing  along  that  line. 

Any  measure  that  is  pen-ding  in  Congress  of  the  importance  such  as 
the  resolution  which  we  are  considering  here  I  am  sure  attracts 
country-wide  attention.  I  know  of  no  Member  of  Congress  wrho  has 
received  protests  from  his  constituents  as  to  action  on  the  part  of  this 
committee  or  on  the  part  of  Congress  on  one  of  the  pending  resolu- 
tions; and  that  being  so,  Ave  may  infer  that  the  American  people 
want  favorable  action  on  the  part  of  this  committee  and  on  the  part 
of  Congress  on  one  of  them,  whichever  one  you  gentlemen  agree  upon. 
I  hope  that  early  and  favorable  action  will  be  taken.  My  limited 
time  does  not  permit  of  extended  remarks.  The  representatives  of 
the  American  people  merely  ask  the  representatives  of  our  Nation 
at  the  peace  conference  to  take  up  the  question  of  the  self-determina- 
tion of  Ireland. 

STATEMENT  OF  ME.  JOHN  P.  LEAHY,  OF  ST.  LOUIS,  MO. 

Mr.  Leahy.  I  represent  a  large  number  of  men  of  Irish  birth  and 
blood  in  St.  Louis  of  all  professions  and  occupations  and.  in  addi- 
tion to  that,  some  of  the  labor  unions,  and  we  have  come  here  to  ask 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


129 


you  to  pass  this  resolution.  I  feel  there  is  one  thought  I  should 
impress  upon  you — that  the  present  British  Government  has,  by  its 
present  spokesman,  admitted  its  inability  to  settle  this  question. 
That  is  because  they  fail  to  apply  the  only  rule  by  which  it  can  be 
settled — the  rule  and  principle  which  guide  the  deliberations  of  the 
Government  we  belong  to,  namely,  majority  rule.  We  ask  them  to 
give  the  Irish  people  the  right  to  apply  the  rule  of  the  majority  to  de- 
termine the  form  of  government  under  which  they  desire  to  live.  I 
can  speak  for  myself  and,  I  think,  for  every  man  that  is  here  and  for 
every  man  of  our  race  in  America,  when  that  question  is  submitted 
to  the  Irish  people  and  fairly  determined  by  them,  we  shall  accept 
the  decision  they  make  in  the  matter  as  the  final  decision  on  the  Irish 
question. 

STATEMENT  OF  PROF.  JOSEPH  DUNN,  OF  THE  CATHOLIC 
UNIVERSITY,  WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 

Prof.  Dunn.  I  speak  for  the  Catholic  University  of  America,  of  the 
faculty  of  which  I  am  a  member.  I  wish  to  read,  for  insertion  in  the 
record,  a  letter  from  Rt.  Rev.  Thomas  J.  Shahan,  rector  of  the  uni- 
versity, to  the  President  on  this  question,  as  follows: 

The  Catholic  University  of  America, 
Wushinffton,  D.  C.  November  30,  WIS. 

Hon.  Woodrow  Wilson, 

President  of  the  United  states. 

Your  Excellency  :  You  are  about  to  depart  for  Europe,  to  be  at  the  Peace 
Conference  what  you  were  during  the  trying  days  of  war,  the  spokesman  and 
the  interpreter  of  the  lovers  of  liberty  in  every  land.  The  burden  now  rests 
upon  you  of  giving  practical  application  to  the  principles  of  justice  and  fair 
dealing  among  nations  which,  as  expounded  in  your  many  noble  utterances, 
have  made  our  country  more  than  ever  in  its  history  the  symbol  of  hope  to  all 
oppressed  nations.  Wherefore,  we.  the  rector  and  faculties  of  the  Catholic 
University  of  America,  take  this  opportunity  to  address  you  and  to  ask  respect- 
fully that  in  this  historic  gathering  you  be  the  spokesman  for  the  immemorial 
national  rights  of  Ireland.  Your  influence  will  certainly  go  far  toward  a  final 
acknowledgment  of  the  rightful  claims  of  Ireland  to  that  place  among  the 
nations  of  the  earth  from  which  she  has  so  long  and  so  unjustly  been  excluded. 
We  are  convinced  that  any  settlement  of  the  great  political  issues  now  involved 
which  does  not  satisfy  the  national  claims  of  Ireland  will  not  be  conducive  to  a 
secure  and  lasting  peace.  You  have  said,  "  No  peace  can  last,  or  ought  to  last, 
which  does  not  recognize  and  accept  the  principle  that  governments  derive  all 
their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed."  Disregard  of  the  rights 
of  small  nations  has  aroused  a  spirit  of  righteous  indignation  which  can  never 
be  appeased  as  long  as  any  nation  holds  another  in  subjection.  Subjection  and 
democracy  are  incompatible.  In  the  new  order,  "national  aspirations  must  be 
respected ;  peoples  may  now  be  dominated  and  governed  only  by  their  own 
consent.    1  Self-determination  '  is  not  a  mere  phrase." 

In  keeping  with  these  words  of  truth,  we  hold  that  the  right  of  Ireland  to 
"self-determination"  is  immeasurably  stronger  than  that  of  any  nation  for 
which  you  have  become  the  advocate.  Moreover,  Ireland's  claims  are  a  hun- 
dredfold reenforced  by  her  centuries  of  brave,  though  unavailing,  struggle 
against  foreign  domination,  tyranny,  and  autocracy.  The  manner  in  which  the 
national  rights  of  Ireland  will  be  handled  at  the  Peace  Conference  is  a  matter 
of  deep  concern  to  many  millions  of  people  throughout  the  world,  and  it  is  no 
exaggeration  to  say  that  the  purpose  of  the  United  States  in  entering  the  war, 
namely,  to  secure  a  world-wide  and  lasting  peace,  will  surely  be  nullified  if  a 
large  and  influential  body  of  protest  remains  everywhere  as  a  potent  source  of 
national  friction  and  animosity. 

That  such  unhappy  feelings  may  not  remain  to  hinder  and  embitter  the  work 
of  the  world's  political,  social,  and  economic  reconstruction,  we  ask  you  to  use 
your  great  influence  at  the  Peace  Conference  to  the  end  that  the  people  of 


97017—19  9 


130 


THE  IK1SH  QUESTION. 


Ireland  be  permitted  to  determine  for  themselves  through  a  free  and  fnir 
plebiscite  the  form  of  government  under  which  they  wish  to  Llye. 

With  most  cordial  sentiment  of  respect  and  esteem,  I  remain,  very  sincerely 
yours, 

lit.  Rev.  Thomas  J.  Smaiian, 
Rector  of  the  Catholic  University  of  America. 

Dr.  Dunn.  Although  this  letter  was  presented  to  the  President  on 
the  opening  day  of  the  present  session  of  Congress,  and  although  the 
President  was  overwhelmed  with  cares  and  burdens  on  that  last  day 
before  he  sailed,  he  not  only  acknowledged  receipt  of  the  bishop's 
letter,  but  replied  in  such  a*sympathctic  tone  as  would  make  inter- 
esting reading  for  the  members  of  this  honorable  committee. 

Mr.  Lynch.  In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  name  of  Justice  Victor  J. 
Dowling  has  been  mentioned  here  to-day,  I  wish  to  state  that  he 
signed  the  petition  sent  to  President  Wilson  by  the  Friendly  Sons 
of  St.  Patrick  of  Xew  York,  of  which  he  is  president,  urging  self- 
determination  for  Ireland. 

STATEMENT  OF  REV.  PATRICK  A.  SHARKEY.  OF  SYRACUSE. 

Rev.  Father  Siiarket.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  com- 
mittee, with  regard  to  the  Irish  in  the  Revolutionary  Army,  a  large 
proportion  of  them  were  undoubtedly  Protestant,  and  I  never  heard 
an  Irishman  claim  or  suggest  the  contrary.  Protestants— especially 
Presbyterians — as  well  as  Catholics,  came  to  America  to  escape  Eng- 
lish misrule  in  Ireland.  They  were  the  compatriots  of  the  Protest- 
ants who  assembled  in  the  Dungannon  Convention,  of  those  who 
filled  the  ranks  of  Grattan's  Irish  Volunteers  in  1782  and  of  Tone's 
"  United  Irishmen  "  in  1798. 

Thomas  Davis,  the  Irish  Protestant  poet  and  patriot,  wrote: 

Then  start  not  Irish-born  man, 

[f  you're  to  Ireland  true, 

We  heed  not  race,  nor  creed,  nor  clan, 

We're  hearts  and  hands  for  you. 

It  is  in  this  spirit  we  think  of  the  Irish  in  the  Revolutionary  Army — 
they  were  true  to  Ireland's  ideals  and  true  to  America. 

At  the  same  time  Ave  must  note  that  the  Muster  Roll  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary Army  shows  a  very  large  percentage  of  men  with  Irish 
Catholic  names,  many  of  whom  had  lost  the  faith  owing  to  the  fact 
that  in  most  parts  of  the  country  they  had  no  Catholic  clergymen  to 
minister  to  them  and  keep  it  alive,  and  then  there  were  the  religious 
disabilities  existing  outside  of  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania. 

Gentlemen,  it  is  impossible  to  deal  with  the  contribution  of  the 
Irish  race  to  American  greatness  in  the  short  time  at  my  disposal, 
and  I  commend  to  your  attention  on  this  question  the  work  written 
by  Michael  J.  O'Brien,  historiographer  of  the  American-Irish  His- 
torical Society,  entitled  "A  Hidden  Phase  of  American  History," 
just  published  by  the  Devin  Adair  Co.,  of  New  York. 

STATEMENT  OF  GEORGE  HOLDEN  TINKHAM,  A  REPRESENTA- 
TIVE IN  CONGRESS  FROM  MASSACHUSETTS. 

Mr.  Tinkham.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  of  the  committee,  I 
am  in  favor  of  this  committee  reporting  to  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives one  of  the  resolutions  which  it  has  before  it.    The  one  I  prefer 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION. 


131 


is  the  one  introduced  by  the  honorable  Representative  from  Illinois,. 
Mr.  Gallagher,  because  of  its  simplicity  and  directness. 

In  1775  America  began  the  contest  to  establish  for  all  time  the 
only  fundamental  truth  upon  which  government  can  rest  and  by 
which  a  state  can  endure,  that  the  consent  of  the  governed  is  neces- 
sary for  all  law  and  order.  That  principle  was  established  by  the 
American  Revolution  and  is  the  tirst  and  most  fundamental  of  Amer- 
ican ideals. 

America  engaged  in  the  great  world  war  for  that  principle,  so  it 
was  declared  by  our  President,  and  so  it  was  fought  by  America. 

Justice  for  all  peoples  and  all  countries,  particularly  the  small 
countries,  was  his  assertion.  Xo  peace  but  one  of  justice,  he  said7 
could  be  a  lasting  peace.  Our  President,  who  is  our  representative 
in  France  at  this  moment,  has  said  that  self-determination  should 
be  the  rule  to  govern  the  establishment  of  state-  and  nations  under 
any  peace  to  which  America  should  assent.  Therefore,  it  is  fit  and 
proper  that  the  Congress  should  pass  a  resolution  expressing  its 
opinion  that  Ireland  should  be  treated  with  equal  justice  and  upon 
the  same  principles  as  other  nationalities  in  the  coming  peace  treaties. 
Ireland  repeatedly  has  asserted  her  nationality  and  has  demanded 
self-determination.  When  the  world  is  to  be  governed  by  free  peoples 
the  claim  of  Ireland  can  not  be  ignored. 

Let  us  again  at  this  important  moment  when  the  political  world  is- 
being  made  anew  reassert  our  belief  in  the  fundamental  American 
principle  of  Government,  that  the  consent  of  the  governed  alone  is- 
the  test  for  government  and  for  justice,  and  that  no  country,  race,  or 
nationalitv.  including  Ireland,  be  excluded  from  its  application. 

The  following  matter  was  submitted  for  insertion  in  the  record: 

House  of  Repbesentattves, 

Washington,  December  19,  1918- 

H<»n.  Henry  D.  Flood, 

Chairman  Foreign  Affair*  Committee, 

House  of  Representatives. 
My  Deak  Colleague:  Owing  to  my  absence  from  Washington  I  was  unable 
to  appear  at  the  hearings  on  House  joint  resolution  357  introduced  by  Mr. 
Gallagher,  requesting  the  Ilepieseniatives  of  the  United  States  to  the  interna- 
tional peace  conference  to  present  to  the  said  conference  the  right  of  Ireland 
to  self-determination,  predicated  on  the  principle  laid  down  by  the  Pre:-ident 
in  his  several  addresses  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States. 

I  sent  you  a  telegram  from  New  York  which  I  would  like  to  have  inserted 
in  the  hearings  as  well  as  a  >tatement  that  I  inclose. 
Sincerely,  yours, 

John  I.  Xolan. 
Fifth  District  of  California z. 


House  oe  Representatives, 

Washington,  December  IfK  1918- 

Hon.  Henry  1  Flood. 

Chairman  Foreign  Affairs  Committee, 

Houst  of  Representatives. 

My  Deak  Colleague  :  I  was  unavoidably  absent  from  the  city  last  week  when 
the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  considered  House  joint  resolution  357.  intro- 
duced by  Mr.  Gallagher  of  Illinois,  requesting  the  commissioners  of  the  United 
States  of  America  to  the  international  peace  conference  to  present  to  the  said 
conference  the  right  of  Ireland  to  freedom,  independence,  and  self-determination. 

During  my  recent  visit  to  San  Francisco  I  found  a  very  strong  sentiment 
existing  among  all  classes  of  people  in  the  city  that  President  Wilson's  declara- 
tion regarding  self-determination  by  the  smaller  nations  of  the  world  as  to  the- 


132 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


form  <>r  government  under  which  thej  should  live  should  apply  to  the  Irish 
nation.  I  strongly  favor  this  position  and  believe  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  should  pass  the  Gallagher  resolution  at  the  earliest  opportunity,  so  that 
our  conferees  might  know  the  position  of  the  American  people  through  their 
chosen  representatives  in  Congress. 

I  have  been  asked  to  represent  a  number  of  organizations  in  San  Francisco 
favoring  the  Gallagher  resolution,  among  these  being  the  San  Francisco  Labor 
Council,  the  United  Irish  Societies  of  San  Francisco,  a  number  of  organization 
divisions  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  Golden  Gate  Aerie,  No.  61,  Fra- 
ternal Order  of  Eagles,  executive  board  of  the  United  Brewery  Workmen  of 
California,  the  San  Francisco  Council,  Young  Men's  Institute,  the  Brotherhood 
of  Teamsters,  the  California  Shwte  Federation  of  Labor,  and  a  number  of  other 
societies,  representing  in  the  aggregate  several  hundred  thousand  people,  all 
united  in  one  thought,  that  justice  can  not  prevail  unless  President  Wilson's 
ideas  of  self-determination  of  the  form  of  government  under  which  the  smaller 
nations  shall  live  be  applied  to  the  case  of  Ireland. 

In  this  connection  I  would  like  to  have  incorporated  an  editorial  from  the 
New  York  American  under  date  of  Wednesday,  December  11. 

I  trust  that  rhe  committee  will  see  its  way  clear  to  report  the  resolution 
immediately  with  a  favorable  recommendation,  so  that  it  may  pass  the  House 
and  Senate  in  time  to  be  transmitted  to  our  representatives. 
Sincerely,  yours, 

John  I.  Nolan, 
Fifth  District  of  C&Ufornia. 


[RELAND  SHOULD  HAVE  BIGHT  TO  GOVEBN  I TSKLF. 

The  British  Labor  Party  will  nor  carry  this  coming  election.  Neither  does 
the  British  Labor  Party  expect  to  carry  this  coming  election. 

But  every  intelligent  man  in  Great  Britain,  no  matter  what  his  sympathies 
may  be,  knows  very  well  that  the  British  Labor  Party  will  sooner  or  later  have 
a  majority  in  Parliament. 

One  of  the  demands  of  the  British  Labor  Party  is  that  the  people  of  Ireland 
shall  have  the  right  of  self-determination. 

That  is  to  say,  if  the  Irish  people  so  decide  by  a  referendum,  Ireland  can 
remain  a  constituent  part  of  the  British  Empire  or  it  can  be  independent. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  men  not  of  Irish  blood,  and  therefore  not  subject  to 
prejudice,  but  who  do  sympathize  with  the  Irish  in  their  desire  to  govern  them- 
selves, mostly  believe  that  the  ideal  solution  of  the  whole  Irish  question  lies 
in  the  federation  of  the  British  Empire  exactly  as  our  own  48  States  are  fed- 
erated, each  State  retaining  its  right  of  local  self-government  and  all  being 
bound  together  in  a  willing  and  mutual  patriotic  devotion  to  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment which  speaks  for  them  in  international  matters. 

In  other  words,  many  students  and  thinkers  who  have  at  heart  the  welfare  of 
the  Irish  people  believe  that  the  best  interests  of  Ireland  would  be  served  by  an 
agreement  which  would  guarantee  the  conduct  of  Irish  affairs  by  the  Irish 
people  and  which  would  also  unite  them  with  the  peoples  of  England,  Scotland, 
Wales.  Canada,  Australia.  New  Zealand,  and  South  Africa  in  a  federated 
nation  constructed  upon  the  same  lines  upon  which  the  Republic  of  the  United 
States  is  constructed. 

Under  such  conditions  the  people  of  Ulster  would  have  their  minority  rights 
in  the  federal  parliament,  and  the  people  of  the  rest  of  Ireland  would  have 
their  majority  rights  in  the  federal  parliament,  and  both  would  have  their 
rights  in  the  local  Irish  parliament. 

We  are  well  aware  that  such  a  proposal  will  not  appeal  either  to  the  ex- 
tremists among  the  Catholic  Irishmen  or  the  extremists  among  the  Protestant 
Irishmen. 

But  we  are  quite  sure  that  the  one  Lesson  which  history  repeats  over  and 
over  again  is  that  all  relations,  both  of  individuals  and  of  peoples,  are  in  the 
long  run  a  matter  of  compromise,  and  that  these  compromises  are  invariably 
found  to  be  in  the  long  run  better  settlements  than  th>>  settlements  by  either 
class  of  extremists. 

We  think  that  Ireland  should  be  entirely  free  to  govern  itself. 

We  believe  that  in  all  Irish  affairs  and  in  nil  matters  pertaining  to  Ireland 
the  Irish  people  should  be  the  sole  judges  of  what  ought  to  be  clone. 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION. 


133 


We  think  that  neither  Englishmen  nor  Scotchmen  nor  Welshmen  should  have 
anything  more  to  say  about  the  conduct  of  purely  Irish  affairs  than  they  should 
have  to  say  about  the  conduct  of  affairs  in  New  York  or  in  California. 

Which  is  to  say  that  we  believe  in  the  right  of  the  Irish  people  to  govern 
themselves  by  their  own  consent. 

Yet.  on  the  other  hand,  we  do  believe  that  careful  thinking  will  show  to  every 
reasonable  i^erson  that  a  small  people  like  the  Irish,  dwelling  on  an  island 
which  could  be  easily  blockaded  by  a  hostile  fleet  and  which  is  open  to  attack 
either  from  the  neighboring  island  of  Great  Britain  or  from  the  neighboring 
Continent  of  Europe,  would  be  defenseless  against  one  of  the  greater  powers 
and  should,  as  a  matter  of  wise  precaution,  link  itself  with  a  maritime  empire 
that  has  just  so  signally  displayed  its  ability  to  resist  and  to  destroy  the  great- 
est military  power  which  Europe  has  seen  since  the  star  of  Napoleon  set  in 
the  night  of  Waterloo. 

President  Wilson's  proclaimed  ideals  of  international  democracy  seem  to 
justify  the  hope  that  he  inclines  in  his  program  to  the  rightful  freedom  of  the 
Irish  people. 

And  now  that  the  President  is  backed  up  by  the  liberal  and  farsighted  sup- 
port of  the  British  Labor  Party,  he  may  be  able  to  achieve  the  freedom  of  Ire- 
land if  he  makes  that  one  of  his  specific  demands. 

We  trust  that  the  President  will  do  that  very  thing. 

We  trust  that  when  he  appears  at  the  peace  conference  to  maintain  the  doc- 
trine of  self-determination  and  the  right  of  every  people,  great  or  small,  to 
govern  itself  that  Ireland  will  be  included  among  the  small  nations  whose 
democratic  safety  the  President  has  pledged  himself  to  safeguard. 

STATEMENT  OP  MR.  HUGH  MONTAGUE.  OF  PASSAIC.  N.  J. 

Mr.  Montague.  I  represent  the  Employers'  Federation  of  North- 
em  New  Jersey,  and.  as  the  father  of  two  "boys  in  our  Army,  add  my 
word  to  that  of  my  fellow  citizens  here  in  urging  you  to  see  to  it 
that  Ireland  shall  be  granted  international  justice  and  allowed  to 
choose  her  own  form  of  government  in  her  own  way. 

STATEMENT  OP  MP.  T.  J.  DOYLE.  OE  ST.  PAUL.  MINN 

Mr.  Doyle.  Since  coming  here.  I  have  been  obliged  to  change  the 
remarks  that  I  intended  to  make  to  this  committee,  and  it  was  due 
solely  to  that  infamous  siander  cast  upon  our  people  this  morning. 
I  am  president  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  Life  Insurance 
Society  in  Minnesota.  Immediately  after  war  was  declared.  I  called 
the  directors  of  that  association  together  for  the  purpose  of  increas- 
ing the  rate  during  war  time,  so  that  no  member  who  had  insurance 
in  that  institution  and  went  to  war  should  have  cause  to  feel  that 
they  were  going  to  lose  the  insurance,  because  that  was  one  of  the 
conditions  in  our  constitution. 

We  changed  that  condition  so  that  every  man  who  would  go  to  the 
war  could  maintain  his  policy.  We  appeal  to  you  to-day  to  stand  by 
the  resolution  that  is  before  you.  and  I  will  go  back  home  to  the 
North  Star  Stare  and  be  satisfied  the  Congressmen  here  in  Washing- 
ton are  true  to  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

STATEMENT  OE  ME.  P.  J.  REYNOLDS.  STATE  PRESIDENT  OE  THE 
ANCIENT  ORDER  OE  HTBERNIANS.  OE  THE  STATE  OE  ILLINOIS. 

Mr.  Reynolds.  I  did  not  intend  to  address  your  honorable  body 
when  I  came  down  here.  I  don't  practice  talking  very  much.  I  re- 
serve that  more  for  home  consumption.  I  am  a  worker  more  than 
a  talker.   I  have  been  a  member  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians 


1  3  I 


THE  IEISH  QUESTION. 


4(>  consecutive  veins.  During  that  time  I  have  held  a  considerable 
number  of  offices  in  building  up  the  organization  in  England  and 
the  United  States,  and  T  must  say  that  in  all  of  my  years  of  experi- 
ence T  never  knew  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  in  Illinois  or  in 
finy  other  State  of  the  Union,  or  elsewhere,  to  be  anything  else  but 
American  and  Irish,  and  since  the  declaration  of  war  I  know  posi- 
tively that  there  has  not  been  a  resolution  passed  at  any  of  its  princi- 
pal gatherings  that  would  tend  to  lead  anybody  to  believe  that  they 
were.  pro-German. 

I  deny  in  toto  the  aspersions  made  by  the  gentleman  from  Con- 
necticut on  the  loyalty  of  the  Ancient  Order,  and  may  state  that  my 
entire  family  are  fighting  for  the  Stars  and  Stripes,  my  only  boys, 
and  I  only  wish  that  I  had  more  of  them  to  send  to  defend  the  flag 
that  stood  and  stands  for  the  freedom  of  all  nations. 

STATEMENT  OF  MR.  BERNARD  LYONS.  REPRESENTING  THE 
BUILDING  TRADES  OF  NEW  YORK. 

Mr.  Lyons.  I  represent  the  building  trades  of  Xew  York,  a  portion 
of  that  section  of  labor  we  heard  from  yesterday,  through  Mr.  Rock. 
T  wish  to  say  this,  that  the  labor  world  believes  that  nations  should 
no  longer  settle  disputes  by  the  old  method  of  brute  force;  that  rea- 
son is  the  best  way  to  settle  all  affairs.  The  best  proof  of  that  is  the 
record  of  the  English  labor  party.  They  have  gone  on  record  as 
favoring  self-determination  for  the  Irish  people. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  P.  J.  O'DONOHUE,  OF  MINNEAPOLIS,  MINN. 

Mr.  O'Donohtje.  I  come  before  you  this  morning,  from  Minne- 
apolis, to  convey  the  opinion  expressed  in  two  mass  meetings  held  in 
Minnesota  recently.  One  of  them  a  week  ago  last  Friday  night,  and 
the  other  one  last  Monday  night  in  Minneapolis.  As  I  said  before, 
they  were  representative  meetings,  not  of  any  particular  society,  but 
mass  meetings  of  citizens,  where  all  classes  and  all  grades  appeared 
together  and  spoke  on  the  platform  in  favor  of  independence  for 
Ireland  to  decide  for  herself  her  own  form  of  government.  I  am 
glad  to  have  the  opportunity  to  present  to  you  the  same  view  this 
morning,  and  to  say  that  we  are  in  hearty  accord  with  all  that  has 
been  said  in  favor  of  the  resolution  here.  We  are  all  entirely  for 
freedom  in  all  the  West.  We  don't  think  it  is  right  to  leave  out  any 
particular  people.  We  believe  that  the  spirit  of  Jefferson  and  the 
spirit  of  the  other  American  patriots  is  large  enough  to  include  all 
the  people  in  the  world. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  JOHN  J.  CURLEY,  OF  BOSTON,  MASS. 

Mr.  Curlet.  We  held  an  Irish  meeting  at  Symphony  Hall,  Bos- 
ton, last  Monday  night,  attended  by  15,000  people.  The  following 
resolution,  which  was  sent  to  the  President,  was  unanimously  passed: 

Whereas  the  United  Slates  Government  lias  been  an  important  factor  in  the 
successful  issue  of  this  world-wide  war:  and 

Whereas  our  President,  the  Hon.  Woodrow  Wilson,  as  commander  in  chief  of 
the  United  States  forces,  has  declared  that  our  dominating  object  in  entering 
the  war  has  been  the  principle  of  self-determination  for  all  nations,  whether 
$rreat  or  small :  and 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


135 


Whereas  the  Irish  nation  antedates  any  of  the  present  European  nations, 
and  has  the  closest  affiliations  with  the  United  States : 

Therefore,  we.  the  undersigned,  as  American  citizens,  in  accordance  with  our 
constitutional  rights,  respectfully  petition  the  President  to  use  the  unselfish 
position  of  the  United  States  to  the  end  that  the  claims  of  Ireland  to  be  a  free 
and  independent  nation  in  the  fellowship  of  nations  shall  be  acknowledged  by 
the  United  States:  and  the  place  of  Ireland  in  whatsoever  congress  may  be 
gathered,  after  the  war.  to  agree  on  the  future  of  the  peoples,  may  be  assured 
by  the  influence  of  the  United  States  in  such  measure  that  Ireland  may  stand 
on  equal  condition  with  Poland,  with  Serbia,  with  Belgium,  and  with  all  the 
wronged  nations  of  the  world. 

I  would  say  in  regard  to  this  petition  that  it  was  signed  by  his 
eminence.  William  Cardinal  O'Connell.  archbishop  of  Boston,  and  by 
300  of  the  priests  of  Boston. 

One  of  the  big  issues  before  the  world  to-day  is  the  independence 
of  Ireland- 
There  is  no  thought  of  Government  other  than  that  determined  by 
the  Irish  people  themselves  by  majority  of  their  own  electorate, 
which  will  give  Ireland  representation  as  a  nation. 

If  world-wide  peace  is  to  be  assured  under  a  league  of  nations, 
which  now  appears  to  be  the  underlying  mission  of  our  great  Presi- 
dent overseas,  then  there  must  be  no  government  under  force,  such  as 
rules  in  Ireland  to-day  under  the  present  sovereignty  of  Great 
Briri-.:::. 

The  Irish  people  are  to-day  united  for  stable  government  under 
their  own  franchise,  for  self-determination  before  the  world,  and 
will  gladly  accept  the  same  assurance  of  nationality  that  will  be  given 
Serbia,  the  Czecho-Slovaks.  and  other  -mailer  nations. 

The  league  of  nations  must  protect  and  sustain  all  nationalities 
of  the  world.  The  intent  and  purpose  of  such  a  league  of  nations  is 
the  placing  of  an  end  for  all  times  of  the  sovereignty  of  an  empire 
over  other  peoples  by  forms  of  government  against  which  sovereignty 
the  people  of  a  nation  protest,  as  is  evidenced  in  Ireland  to-day. 

The  purpose  of  the  peace  conference  at  Versailles  is  to  perpetuate 
free  and  untrammeled  government  for  all  people  and  for  all  times, 
and  the  pleas  of  the  people  of  Ireland,  voiced  for  over  700  years, 
must  be  heard  at  this  time  as  among  the  first  consideration  of  world- 
wide peace,  self-determination  for  the  people  of  Ireland,  and  op- 
portunity to  govern  themselves. 

It  Ls  idle  to  assume  that  there  can  be  a  league  of  nations  that  will 
protect  the  smaller  nations  unless  forms  of  government  are  assured, 
such  as  a  majority  of  the  voters  of  the  smaller  nations  desire,  and  of 
the  4-300.000  population  of  Ireland,  to-day  fully  85  per  cent  are  de- 
termined for  the  policy  of  self-determination. 

The  security,  the  well  being  of  nations  to-day.  and  for  the  future 
can  not  be  determined  by  the  force  of  arms — it  must  rest  upon  the 
free  and  untrammeled  franchise  for  all  men  qualified  as  voters. 

President  Wilson  upon  September  '27.  191S.  declared  : 

Shall  the  military  power  of  any  nation  or  group  of  nations  be  suffered  to 
determine  the  fortunes  of  people  over  whom  they  have  no  right  to  rule  except 
the  right  of  force: 

The  appeal  of  the  people  of  Ireland  to-day  is  against  the  further 
domination  of  Great  Britain  by  u  the  right  of  force.*"  If  the  freedom 
of  the  people  of  the  United  States  to  govern  themselves  in  1776  was 
their  inherent  right,  the  people  of  Ireland  should  enjoy  the  same 
inherent  right  to-day. 


136 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  government — the  voice  of  the  people  to  govern  themselves, 
must  be  the  watchword  for  the  smaller  nations  of  the  future,  and 
free  government  for  Ireland  is  to-day  the  demand  of  its  people. 

The  power  of  sovereignty  by  might  has  been  overthrown  in  Ger- 
many at  frightful  cost,  it  must  be  relinquished  by  Great  Britain  as  a 
matter  of  international  necessity. 

There  can  be  no  league  of  nations  unless  the  greater  nations  at  the 
peace  table  offer  some  voluntary  sacrifices  and  relinquishments  of 
power,  and  the  right  of  Ireland  to  govern  herself  should  be  the  first 
relinquishment  of  Great  Britain. 

Mr.  G.mxactier.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  have  here  a  petition  handed  me 
by  Alderman  Thomas  J.  Ahern.  of  Chicago,  who  is  present  at  the 
hearing  and  desires  me  to  have  it  made  a  part  of  the  record.  The 
petition  is  as  follows: 

A  PETITION  FOR  SELF-DETERMINATION  FOR  IRELAND. 

We,  the  members  of  the  United  Irish  Societies  of  Chicago,  beg  that  in  con- 
sideration of  what  Ireland  has  done  for  our  country  from  the  time  of  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence,  throughout  the  struggling  period  of  our  national  life,  and 
of  what  horn  Irishmen  naturalized  in  our  country,  and  their  descendants,  have 
done,  are  doing,  and  will  continue  to  do  for  its  defense  and  upbuilding,  your 
committee  and  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  take  steps  to  see  that  Ireland 
be  given  back  her  sovereignty  and  the  right  to  determine  for  herself  what  form 
of  government  she  wishes. 

Thomas  J.  Ahern,  President. 
John  P.  Roche,  Treasurer. 

Also  the  folloAving  resolutions: 

Hon.  Thomas  Gallagher,  M.  C, 

Washington,  D.  C. 

Dear  Sir:. At  the  regular  quarterly  meeting  of  the  St.  Patrick's  Commercial 
Academy  Alumni,  held  on  December  9,  the  following  resolutions  were  proposed 
by  the  Hon.  Robert  M.  Sweitzer,  seconded  by  Judge  Hugh  A.  Kerns,  and  passed 
unanimously : 

Whereas,  Ireland  is  now  being  held  down  by  military  force ;  and 
Whereas,  the  allies,  as  well  as  the  United  States,  have  declared  that  they  stand 
for  self-determination  for  all  small  nations ; 

Resolved.  That  the  St.  Patrick's  Commercial  Academy  Alumni  declare  that  the 
Irish  nation  should  be  permitted  to  choose,  by  popular  vote,  the  government  for 
which  it  has  so  long  struggled ;  and  that  President  Wilson  and  the  other  Ameri- 
can delegates  to  the  peace  conference  should  stand  firm  for  self-determination  for 
Ireland. 

Resolved,  further,  That  as  a  great  effort  is  now  heing  made  all  over  the 
United  States  by  many  hundreds  of  thousands  of  freedom-loving  Americans,  to 
bring  about  self-determination  for  Ireland,  they  pledge  themselves  to  neglect 
no  opportunity,  while  the  peace  conference  is  in  session,  to  aid  in  every  way  they 
can  to  bring  to  this  worthy  agitation  the  success  it  deserves. 

It  is  the  desire  of  the  alumni  named  above  that  these  resolutions  be  delivered 
to  Hon.  Joseph  P.  Tumulty  for  transmission  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States.    Will  you,  if  you  please,  perform  this  office  for  them? 
Yours,  very  truly, 

Peter  J.  McKenna,  Secretary. 

The  following  resolutions  were  unanimously  adopted  at  a  regular 
meeting  of  Wa'ldron-Murphy  Camp  No.  29,  Department  of  Illinois, 
United  Spanish  War  Veterans,  held  Wednesday,  December  11,  1918, 
with  instructions  that  they  be  presented  to  the  self-determination 
mass  meeting,  at  First  Regiment  Armory,  Sunday,  December  15 : 

Whereas  the  United  States  of  America  entered  the  European  war  for  no 
other  purpose  than  to  make  possible  and  permanent  the  right  of  each  people  to 
govern  themselves,  without  interference  from  others;  and 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


137 


Whereas  the  President  of  the  United  States  has  declared  that  the  world 
must  be  made  safe  for  democracy ;  and 

Whereas  in  support  of  the  policy  of  our  President  it  is  the  duty  of  all  liberty- 
loving  citizens  of  this  free  Nation  to  aid  him  to  their  fullest  extent  in  securing 
for  the  smaller  nations  of  the  world  the  right  of  freedom  and  independence: 
Therefore  be  it 

Resolved,  That  Waldron-Murphy  Camp,  No.  29,  of  Spanish  War  Veterans, 
composed  of  men  of  all  creeds,  who  volunteered  their  lives  to  secure  liberty 
and  self-determination  for  the  oppressed  people  of  Cuba,  do  earnestly  urge 
the  people  of  this  Nation  to  instruct  their  representatives  to  the  peace  con- 
ference to  make  every  effort  to  secure  for  the  Irish  people  the  same  right 
of  self-determination  of  government  for  which  American  soldiers  have  fought 
and  died :  And  be  it  further 

Resolved,  That  'we,  as  a  patriotic  organization,  do  heartily  approve  of  the 
object  of  this  mass  meeting,  to  the  end  that  the  sacrifices  made  by  the  people  of 
this  Nation  in  the  recent  conflict  shall  not  have  been  made  in  vain. 

P.  J.  Skerrett, 

Chairman, 

D.  S.  Mussek, 

E.  V.  Clement, 
T.  R.  Quinlax, 
John  M.  McGuire, 

Committee  on  Resolutions. 

Mr.  Lynch.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  have  here  a  letter  from  Hon.  Ed- 
ward J.  Gavegan,  justice  of  the  supreme  court.  New  York,  addressed 
to  you,  that  I  desire  to  have  placed  in  the  record. 

December  IS,  1018. 

Hon.  Henry  D.  Flood, 

Chairman  Committee  on  Foreign  Relations, 

House  of  Representatives,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Dear  Sir:  Mr.  Lloyd  George  recognizes  the  necessity  of  settling  the  Ir'sh 
question  to  conciliate  America.  President  Wilson  during  the  war  urged  settle- 
ment thereof  to  improve  American  morale.  The  President's  self-determination 
formula  is  absolute  and  all  inclus've.  Self-determination  for  Ireland  will  be 
a  fortunate  thing  not  only  for  that  country  but  also  for  the  national  spirit 
of  our  own  country  as  a  whole,  for  then  it  can  be  no  longer  said  of  yourself, 
whose  family  has  been  here  for  so  many  generations,  and  myself,  whose  family  is 
now  here  in  the  fifth  generation,  and  of  upward  of  20,000,000  of  other  Ameri- 
cans of  the  same  stock,  that  they  are  the  offspring  of  a  subject  race.  I  do 
not  mean  to  be  offens've,  but  that  wrankling  thought  is  always  with  me.  and 
it  has  seemed  to  me  even  during  the  intense  anxieties  of  the  war  that  favor- 
able notion  by  Congress  on  the  resolution  now  before  you  not  only  could  have  t 
been  taken  with  the  utmost  propriety,  but  that  it  would  have  saved  much 
bitterness  of  spirit  between  great  groups  of  our  population  where  otherwise 
harmony  and  mutual  respect  obtained.  Now.  that  all  pretext  of  common 
danger  is  passed,  it  does  not  seem  possible  to  me  that  the  objection  as  to  pro- 
priety can  in  good  faith  and  in  good  conscience  be  raised.  Finally,  some  of  us 
know  and  all  of  us  believe  that  the  President,  whatever  his  former  attitude 
was  by  reason  of  exigencies  now  gone  by,  would  welcome  at  this  time  the 
encouraging  support  of  the  leg'slative  branch  of  our  Government  in  promulgat- 
ing his  great  principle  of  self-determination. 

I  respectfully  urge  favorable  action  by  your  committee  on  the  bill  which  is 
before  you  on  the  quest'on  of  self-determination  for  Ireland. 
Very  truly,  yours, 

Edward  J.  Gavegan. 

Mr.  Lynch.  Mr.  Chairman,  I  also  have  a  telegram  from  Hon.  Johu 
P.  Grace,  ex-mayor  of  Charleston,  S.  C,  that  I  wish  inserted.  It  reads 
as  follows : 

I  am  satisfied  that  if,  by  a  plebiscite,  the  question  of  Irish  freedom  could  be 
left  to  a  vote  in  South  Carolina,  the  answer  in  its  favor  would  be  overwhelming. 
Not  for  home  rule  or  for  autonomy  or  for  any  of  the  makeshifts  proposed  from 
time  to  time,  but  for  absolute  independence. 

John  P.  Grace. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


STATEMENT  OF  MR.  JOHN  O'DAY,  OF  PHILADELPHIA,  PA.,  NA- 
TIONAL CHAIRMAN  OF  THE  HISTORY  COMMITTEE.  ANCIENT 
ORDER  OF  HIBERNIANS. 

Mr.  ODba.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen,  this  I  regard  as  a  most 
momentous  occasion.  The  peaee  conference  will  undoubtedly  be  the 
mosl  influential  deliberative  bod}7  of  all  time.  It  will  give  to  the 
world  a  new  Declaration  of  Independence.  That  of  1776  in  Phila- 
delphia affected  only  the  American  Nation,  while  that  of  1919  in 
Versailles  will,  on  the  authority  of  our  great  President,  affect  all  the 
nations  of  the  earth. 

In  requesting  your  honorable  body  to  declare  in  favor  of  Ireland?s 
demand  for  freedom  I  take  the  liberty  of  pointing  to  the  fact  that  her 
efforts  to  reestablish  her  sovereignty  have  not  been  surpassed  by  any 
nation  in  Europe. 

The  claim  of  Ireland  to  self-determination  is  not  of  yesterday.  Be- 
fore the  Saxons  landed  in  England  the  Irish  had  a  parliament,  laws, 
and  political  institutions. 

The  luminous  genius  of  the  Irish  race  emitted  light  amid  the  gloom 
of  ignorance  that  once  enshrouded  the  whole  continent  of  Europe: 
students  from  a  dozen  nations  lit  their  lamps  at  the  fires  of  Irish 
learning:  the  wisdom  of  the  Irish  sages  penetrated  the  camps  of  bar- 
baric chieftains,  and  kings  and  peasants  listened,  inspired  by  the 
beauty  and  sublimity  of  Irish  conceptions. 

The  Catholic  Confederation  of  1642  enacted  at  the  Parliament  of 
Kilkenny  the  first  laws  guaranteeing  religious  liberty,  and  that  arrest 
and  imprisonment  without  warrant  of  law  was  contrary  to  Irish  cus- 
tom— a  custom  written  in  Irish  statutes  centuries  before  Magna 
Charta.  It  is  worthy  of  notice,  especially  since  up  to  the  present  the 
people  of  Ireland  have  been  denied  the  right  of  self-determination, 
that  the  first  and  most  authoritative  utterance  on  the  equality  of  man 
was  published  by  William  Molyneux  in'  Dublin  in  1G0G.  many  years 
before  Rousseau  and  Thomas  Jefferson  were  born.  That  great  Irish- 
man is  truly  the  father  of  modern  democracy,  so  far  as  it  pertains  to 
that  intellectual  freedom  which  aims  to  throw  off  political,  social, 
and  military  thralldom. 

This  battle  for  the  right  of  self-determination  in  Ireland  is  not 
being  waged  on  religious  grounds.  Catholic  England  having  been 
no  less  harsh  in  its  treatment  of  the  weaker  nation  than  Protestant 
England;  for.  from  the  massacre  at  Waterford  at  the  time  of  the  in- 
vasion of  Stronubow.  down  to  this  very  hour.  England  has  made  a 
record  in  Ireland  that  indeed  is  unparalleled  in  its  cruelty. 

Ireland  had  control  of  her  own  affairs  for  18  years — 1782  to  1800. 
These  were  years  of  unexampled  prosperity,  though  representation 
in  Parliament  was  drawn  from  only  20  per  cent  of  the  population. 
After  this  Parliament  had  been  "  packed  **  with  English  "  placemen" 
it  was  bribed  to  betray  Ireland  and  effect  a  union  with  England,  the 
price  paid  each  traitor  for  his  perfidy  approximating  $40,000. 

HOW  THE  UNION   M  AS  CARRIED. 

Do  not  unite  with  us.  sir:  it  would  he  the  union  of  the  shark  with  his  prey; 
we  should  unite  with  you  only  to  destroy  you.    (Dr.  Samuel  Johnson.) 

If  it  must  he  called  a  union,  it  is  the  union  of  a  shark  with  his  prey ;  the 
spoiler  swallows  op  his  victim  and  they  become  one  and  inseparable.    Thus  has 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


139 


•Great  Britain  swallowed  up  the  parliament,  the  constitution,  the  independence  of 
Ireland.    (Lord  Byron.) 

Such  an  act  (union)  in  the  parliament,  without  the  authority  of  the  people, 
is  a  breach  of  trust.  Parliament  is  not  the  proprietor  but  the  trustee,  and  the 
people  the  proprietor,  not  the  property.  Parliament  is  called  to  make  laws, 
not  to  elect  lawmakers;  assembled  to  exercise  the  functions  of  parliament,  not 
to  substitute  another  parliament  for  the  discharge  of  its  own  duty.  (Grattan.) 

The  collective  body  of  the  people  delegate,  but  do  not  give  up  trust,  but  ao 
not  alienate  their  right  and  power.  There  is  something  which  a  parliament  can 
not  do — a  parliament  can  not  annul  the  constitution.  The  legislature  is  a 
supreme  but  not  an  arbitrary  power.  (Bolingbroke.) 

It  (union)  would  be  the  emigration  of  every  man  of  consequence  in  Ireland. 
It  would  be  the  participation  of  British  taxes  without  British  trade.  (Curran.) 

The  calamitous  result  of  the  union  to  Ireland  is  shown  in  the 
following  figures : 

Population  in  1801: 

England   8,  892,  536 

Ireland   5,395.456 

Scotland   1,  60S,  420 

Present  population : 

England   36,070,492 

Ireland   4,  381,  951 

Scotland   4.  759,  445 

The  figures,  indeed,  tell  their  own  sad  story.  They  cry  loudly  for 
the  termination  of  a  union— that  of  the  Avolf  and  the  lamb. 

With  regard  to  Ireland's  revenue.  I  quote  from  XationalitA*  of 
July  28.  1917: 

Ireland's  revenue  for  the  current  year  will  be  £30,000,009.  That  sum  is  equal 
to  the  normal  revenue  of  Belgium,  which  has  a  population  nearly  double  ours 
to  tax  and  provide  for.  It  is  £6,000,000  greater  than  the  revenue  of  Roumanhi, 
£S,000.000  greater  than  the  revenue  of  Sweden.  £11,000.000  greater  than  the 
revenue  of  Holland.  It  is  equal  to  the  combined  revenues  of  Denmark,  Switzer- 
land, Norway  and  Greece.  It  is  thrice  the  revenue  of  Bulgaria  and  nine  times 
the  revenue  of  Switzerland. 

Ireland  raises  the  largest  revenue  of  the  small  nations  of  Europe — and  what 
does  she  get  for  it? 

*  :|:  *  *  * 

Holland.  Sweden  and/ other  countries  obtain  and  maintain  an  army  and  fleet, 
a  diplomatic  and  consular  service  and  administration  of  Dutch  and  Swedish 
affairs  by  Dutchmen  and  Swedes.  Ireland  gets  none  of  these  things.  The 
thirty  million  goes  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  subjection  of  Ireland  to  Eng- 
lish interests,  and  to  put  a  handsome  profit  in  England's  pocket. 

Ireland  is  three  times  as  large  as  Belgium,  two  and  one-half  times 
the  size  of  Holland,  and  more  richly  fertile  than  either. 

It  is  urged  by  the  spokesmen  of  bigotry  that  there  are  two  Irelands. 
This  can  be  said  of  practically  all  nations  to-day.  Self-determina- 
tion, however,  is  not  denied  them  because  they  do  not  all  worship 
God  at  the  same  altar.  We  ask  only  that  Ireland  be  similarly  treated, 
there  being  no  honorable  reason  for  treating  her  differently,  no  reason 
why  Ireland's  dissenting  minority  should  be  permitted  forever  to  bar 
the  way  to  peace  and  nationhood. 

STATEMENT  OF  PROP.  P.  J.  LENNOX,  LITT.  D.,  OF  THE  CATHOLIC 
UNIVERSITY  OF  AMERICA,  WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 

Dr.  Lexxox.  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen  I  have  prepared  a 
statement  in  favor  of  the  resolution  along  economic  lines  because  I 
thought  that  possibly  that  particular  line  of  argument  had  not  been 
developed,  and  I  am  entirely  in  favor  of  the  passage  of  the  resolution 


140 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


before  your  honorable  body.  I  know  that  your,  action  in  this  matter 
will  give  satisfaction  to  millions  of  people  in  this  country. 

As  a  result  of  the  war — which  is  now,  I  hope,  happily  over — some 
of  thr  smaller  peoples  and  nations  of  Europe  have  been  given,  or  are 
to  be  given,  the  right  of  self-determination,  because  they  were  kept,, 
against  ihv'w  will,  under  the  domination  of  other  nation-,  and  be- 
cause, while  so  subjected,  they  were  badly  governed.  On  both 
grounds,  Ireland  has  a  similar  rightful  claim  to  self-determination. 
Her  struggle  for  freedom  from  foreign  rule  for  750  years  is  unpar- 
alleled in  the  history  of  the  world.  That  she  was  badly  governed 
during  all  that  time  and  that  she  is  badlv  governed  to-day  are  self- 
evident  propositions,  needing  no  proof.  There  is  a  consensus  of  the 
overwhelming  majority  of  mankind  on  that  subject,  As  a  distin- 
guished Englishman,  the  late  \Y.  E.  Gladstone,  put  it.  English  gov- 
ernment in  Ireland  has  -  been  marked  by  every  horror  and  every 
shame  that  could  mark  the  relations  between  a  strong  country  and  a 
weak  one." 

Four  great  lines  of  cleavage  have  always  existed  between  England 
and  Ireland — race,  language,  religion,  and  economics;  and  the  great- 
est of  these  is  economics.  I  wish,  during  the  few  minutes  allotted  to 
me,  to  draw  the  attention  of  your  honorable  body  to  a  few  of  the 
many  economic  questions  on  which  grievous  wrong  has  been  done  to 
Ireland  by  the  predominant  partner  in  the  forced  alliance  existing 
between  them. 

The  first  principle  of  good  government,  namely,  the  happiness  and 
welfare  of  the  people  governed,  has  always  been  set  at  naught  in 
Ireland's  case.  It  would,  for  example,  be  immediately  for  the  good 
of  Ireland,  and  ultimately  for  the  good  of  England,  to  promote  Irish 
trade  and  commerce  and  to  develop  Irish  industrial  resources.  But 
what  do  we  find?  So  far  from  doing  this,  the  English  Government 
has  not  only  not  encouraged  but  has  from  time  to  time  even  taken 
steps  expressly  to  destroy  Irish  business.  Thus  in  1665  the  English 
Parliament  enacted  a  law  prohibiting  the  exportation  of  Irish  cattle 
to  England.  Again,  in  1698,  at  the  bidding  of  English  rivals,  the 
Irish  woolen  trade,  at  that  time  one  of  the  greatest  in  Europe,  was  de- 
liberate!}7 killed  by  an  enactment  forbidding  the  export  of  wool  from 
Ireland  to  any  country  but  England,  and.  at  that,  to  only  one  port  in 
England.  At  a  later  period  the  silk-weaving  industry  of  Dublin  and 
the  glass  industry  of  Waterford  were  also  killed  off.  During  the  war 
between  England  and  her  revolted  American  colonies,  Ireland  was 
reduced  to  the  verge  of  national  bankruptcy  by  an  English  embargo 
on  her  exports. 

Ireland  is  largely  an  agricultural  country — 44  per  cent,  as  compared 
with  8  per  cent  for  England  and  10  per  cent  for  Scotland.  Yet  the 
same  free  trade,  following  on  the  repeal  of  the  Corn  Laws  in  1846, 
which  was  certainly  good  for  industrial  England,  was  pretended  to 
be  equally  good  for  agricultural  Ireland.  The  result  was  that  in 
Ireland  it  was  not  found  possible  to  compete  with  the  foreigner  in 
such  a  staple  product  as  flour,  and  wheat  virtually  ceased  to  be  grown 
in  Ireland,  and  the  ruins  of  hundreds  of  flour  mills  throughout  the 
country  stand  to-day  as  mute  but  expressive  witnesses  of  a  great  na- 
tional wrong. 

Ireland  contains  20,350,725  statute  acres.  Of  these  a  total  of 
12,433,095  were  a  few"  years  ago  under  pasture,  the  lowest  and  least 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


141 


profitable  form  of  agriculture.  Xow.  it  surely  should  be  the  end 
and  aim  of  government  to  put  an  end  to  so  unpromising  a  condition 
of  affairs.  The  question  of  the  drainage  of  flooded  areas  has  been 
before  Parliament  since  I  was  a  child,  and  every  year  something  was 
promised  but  nothing  was  done. 

The  peat  alone  in  the  bogs  is  fraught  with  great  industrial  possibili- 
ties, but  it  remains  an  unworked  source  of  national  wealth,  except  for 
firing,  for  lack  of  Government  encouragement. 

Similarly  the  coal,  iron,  and  other  mineral  wealth  of  Ireland  is 
known  to  scientists  to  be  great,  but  these  are  not  developed  as  they 
would  be  in  a  self-governing  country.  The  result  is  that  nearly  all  the 
coal  burned  in  Ireland  comes  from  northern  England  or  southern 
Wales,  and  so  with  the  iron.  The  inference  is  obvious. 

The  ports  and  harbors  of  Ireland,  which  are  among  the  finest  and 
most  commodious  in  the  world,  are  standing  practically  empty.  Her 
great  rivers,  like  the  lordly  Shannon  and  the  noble  Barrow,  are  run- 
ning idly  to  the  sea.  Her  fisheries  are  scarcely  at  all  Avorked.  All 
these  things  are  the  result  of  willful  neglect,  which  would  not  be  pos- 
sible in  any  country  that  ruled  itself. 

Ireland  is  governed  from  Dublin  Castle  by  67  different  boards, 
which  are  independent  of  one  another,  and  which,  between  them, 
employ  a  formidably  numerous  array  of  officials,  on  whom  one- 
tenth  of  the  Irish  receipts  are  spent,  while  in  England  only  one- 
fortieth  of  the  budget  is  spent  in  administration. 

Again,  in  Ireland,  which  has  the  lowest  criminal  record  in  the 
world,  the  cost  of  police  is  6s.  S<1.  per  head  of  the  population,  while 
in  England  the  cost  is  3s.  4^d.  per  inhabitant,  and  in  Scotland  2s. 
5J& 

Indirect  taxation,  which  presses  heaviest  on  the  poorer  classes, 
represents  TO  per  cent  of  the  Iri^h  taxes,  while  in  England  it  reaches 
only  50  per  cent. 

Xow,  let  me  tell  of  perhaps  the  most  glaring  of  all  the  injustices 
done  to  Ireland.  The  Act  of  Union  of  1800  was  supposed  to  be  a 
solemn  treaty  between  two  sovereign  States,  the  Kingdom  of  Ireland 
on  the  one  hand,  and  the  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain  on  the  other. 
It  was  passed  by  bribery,  corruption,  and  fraud.  It  was  an  unfair 
treaty  to  Ireland.  It  contained,  however,  one  saving  clause — the  two 
exchequers  were  to  be  separate.  But  in  1817  an  act  of  Parliament 
unwarrantably  amalgamated  the  exchequers,  and  from  that  day  to 
this  Ireland  has  had  no  separate  accounting  of  the  collection  and 
expenditure  of  the  taxes  levied  upon  her.  and  no  proper  statement 
of' the  incidence  of  the  taxation.  It  was  long  felt  that  under  this  ar- 
rangement she  was  getting  a  great  deal  the  worse  of  the  bargain. 
Finally,  feeling  on  this  point  ran  so  high  that  in  1891  a  royal  com- 
mission was  appointed  to  investigate  the  financial  relations  between 
the  two  countries.  This  commission  consisted  of  1*2  Englishmen 
and  2  Irishmen.  After  a  painstaking  inquiry  extending  over  three 
years  the  commission  i-sued  its  report  in  1896.  That  report  showed 
that  Ireland  had  been  overtaxed  at  the  rate  of  £3.000.000  a  year! 
Was  anything  then  done  to  remedy  the  monstrous  grievance  shown 
in  this  unfair  incidence  of  taxation?  Not  a  thing.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  has  gone  on  increasing  in  unfairness.  Since  the  war  began 
the  comparative  burden  has  been  still  greater  on  Ireland. 


142 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


The  question  has  been  asked  whether, -if  Ireland  got  self-determina- 
tion, and  decided  to  be  an  independent  nation  outside  (he  British 
Empire,  she  would  be  able  to  be  self-supporting?  Everyone  knows 
that  she  would:  but  a^  a  good  start  would  be  a  desirable  thing,  and 
as  indemnities  are.  very  properly,  the  order  of  the  day,  there  is  an 
indemnity  of  £3,000.000  a  year  for  100  years,  or  £300,000,000,  or 
$1,500,000,000,  exclusive  of  interest,  which  would  assuredly  put  Ire- 
land on  the  right  road  to  the  greatness  which  is  undoubtedly  her  due. 

As  further  proof  of  my  case  as  to  English  misgovernment  of  Ire- 
land, and  therefore  of  Ireland's  right  to  self-determination.  I  hand 
in,  for  inclusion  in  the  record,  a  letter  from  Right  Eev.  Dr.  Hallinan. 
bishop  of  Limerick,  written  on  October  21,  liHS,  to  the  Aid  Feis  in 
Dublin,  and  a  letter  written  at  the  same  time  to  the  same  body 
by  Bight  Rev.  Dr.  Fogarty,  bishop  of  Killaloe.  each  of  which  covers 
points  which  the  limitation  of  time  imposed  upon  me  did  not  permit 
me  to  touch. 

Most  Rev.  Dr.  Hallinan.  in  his  letter  dated  October  21,  said: 

As  I  can  not  be  present  at  the  meeting  of  the  Ard-Feis  of  Sinn  Fein  I  see  no 
objection  to  my  giving  ;in  expression  of  my  views  on  the  present  political  out- 
look. The  present  is.  in  my  opinion,  the  most  momentous  period  in  the  whole 
history  of  Ireland.  The  war  is  nearing  its  end.  and  soon  there  will  be  delegates 
from  all  nations  sitting  in  conference  to  recast  the  map  of  the  greater  part  of 
the  inhabited  world  and  to  decide  in  particular  the  fate  of  small  nationalities. 
It  is  a  matter  of  great  importance  to  this  country  to  have  its  voice  heard  before 
that  assemblage. 

Ireland  is  a  nation  older  than  England,  or  perhaps  than  any  other  race  or 
nation  that  will  be  represented  at  it.  Nature  has  designed  and  fitted  her  to  be 
such,  and  she  has  never  renounced  her  title  or  claim  to  it.  During  the  vicissi- 
tudes and  fiery  ordeals  of  the  last  seven  centuries  she  has  preserved  intact  and 
indestructible  that  principle  of  her  national  individuality  notwithstanding  the 
persistent  efforts  of  England  to  strangle  it. 

In  1782  "a  solemn  compact,"  as  it  was  called  by  the  then  Viceroy,  Lord 
Portland,  was  made  between  "  the  English  and  Irish  nations."  A  statute  was 
passed  in  the  British  Parliament  called  the  Renunciation  Act,  by  which  England 
renounced  all  claim  to  legislate  for  Ireland,  and  this  enactment  was  declared 
"  to  be  established  and  ascertained  forever  and  shall  at  no  time  hereafter  be 
questioned  or  questionable." 

ENGLAND'S  RECORD  OF  INFAMY. 

After  18  years,  during  which  Ireland  advanced  in  a  marvelous  manner  under 
her  own  Parliament,  imperfect  as  it  was  in  many  respects,  in  commerce,  cul- 
tivation, agriculture,  and  manufactures,  that  solemn  treaty  between  two  inde- 
pendent nations  was  shamefully  broken,  or,  in  modern  parlance,  treated  as 
"  a  scrap  of  paper,"  by  the  British  Government  under  Pitt. 

In  1800  he  destroyed  our  Parliament  and  carried  the  act  of  union  by 
"  force,  fraud,  and  corruption,"  to  use  the  words  of  Mr.  Gladstone.  Since  the 
passing  of  that  act  of  infamy  the  history  of  no  civilized  nation  furnishes  any-  , 
thing  to  equal  the  misgovernment  of  this  country  by  the  British  Parliament. 
"  It  has  been  marked,"  to  quote  Mr.  Gladstone,  M  by  every  horror  and  every 
shame  that  could  mark  the  relations  between  a  strong  country  and  a  weak  one." 

By  its  fruits  you  shall  know  it.  Three  abortive  attempts  at  armed  rebellion. 
100  coercion  acts — one  of  them  "  perpetual,"  and  that  in  the  Jubilee  year  of 
Queen  Victoria;  absorption  by  unjust  taxation  of  some  hundreds  of  millions 
of*  our  national  revenue,  and  that  in  flagrant  violation  of  one  of  the  clauses  of 
the  act  of  union:  the  dwindling  of  our  population  from  upward  of  8,000,000  to 
little  more  than  half:  the  flight  of  the  bone  and  sinew  of  our  race  from  their 
motherland  to  foreign  shores,  leaving  behind  them  the  aged  and  the  children, 
for  whose  maintenance  millions  have  been  sent  back  by  the  exiles:  two  arti- 
ficially created  famines;  the  paralysis  of  our  commerce;  the  ruin  of  our  in- 
dustries; the  poverty  and  degradation  of  our  people. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


143 


During  all  this  time  some  remedial  concessions  have  been  wrung  from  a 
hostile  Parliament ;  but,  however,  either  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  under  the 
stress  of  social  revolution,  or  when  it  suited  the  party  purposes  of  British 
politicians.  Nothing  was  given  from  a  sense  of  right  or  justice — as  little  as 
possible  was  given — and  that  little  with  the  worst  grace,  so  that  the  British 
Government  never  deserved  and  never  got  a  word  of  thanks  from  this  nation. 
For  those  who,  like  myself,  have  been  during  a  half-century  witnesses  of  the 
party  intrigues,  the  exasperating  delays,  the  broken  promises,  the  contemptuous 
treatment  of  this  ancient,  downtrodden  nation  by  an  unsympathetic,  arrogant, 
foreign  Parliament,  the  process  of  amelioration  has  been  sickening. 

Now  the  weapon  of  Parliamentarianism,  feeble  and  disappointing  as  it  often 
proved  to  be,  has  been  wrested  from  our  hands.  Carsonism,  which  means  rebel- 
lion against  the  fundamental  principle  of  the  British  constitution  with  its 
threat  "  to  break  every  law,"  the  stirring  up  of  mutiny  in  the  army,  and  its 
cwndonation,  approval,  and  reward  by  the  Government,  has  laid  the  axe  at  the 
root  of  Parliamentarianism,  so  far  as  this  country  at  least  is  concerned. 

SIXX   FEIN    MEANS  SELF-DETERMINATION. 

lint  we  have  at  hand  a  weapon  more  powerful  than  armed  rebellion  or  par- 
liamentarianism, and  that  is  the  policy  of  Sinn  Fein.  For  what  else  is  the 
policy  of  "self-determination" — now  accepted  by  all  nations — but  the  English 
translation  of  the  basic  principle  of  Sinn  Fein? 

Generations  of  Irishmen  in  the  past  have  been  appealing  at  one  time  to  the 
fears,  at  another  to  the  sense  of  justice  of  Englishmen  in  the  British  Parlia- 
ment for  the  freedom  of  their  native  land.  They  have  appealed  in  vain.  Now 
is  the  golden  opportunity  to  change  the  venue  and  to  make  our  appeal  to  the 
international  tribunal  at  the  forthcoming  Peace  Conference.  England's  voice 
may  be  loud  and  strong  there,  but  it  will  not  be  loud  or  strong  enough  to  silence 
before  an  impartial  tribunal  the  voice  of  those  who  will  bespeak  the  undeniable 
rights  and  imperishable  claims  of  this  ancient  race  to  complete  national  inde- 
pendence. There  is  only  one  barrier  to  the  success  of  this  policy,  and  that  is 
the  continued  presence  of  Irish  national  representation  in  the  English  Parlia- 
ment.   They  can  do  no  good  there. 

This  is  no  time  for  them  to  be  toying  and  trifling  with  the  supreme  interests 
of  the  Nation  in  that  assemly  whilst  they  are  at  the  same  time  proclaiming  for 
Ireland  the  right  of  self-determination.  If  they  be  sincere  in  this  profession, 
then  it  seems  to  me  that  it  is  their  duty  to  shake  the  dust  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons off  their  feet,  bid  good-by  to  it  forever,  return  to  their  own  country,  there 
take  counsel  with  the  leaders  of  Sinn  Fein,  enter  into  some  arrangement  with 
them  to  avoid  contested  elections,  and  thus  united  jointly  to  prepare  and  formu- 
late the  national  demand  for  self-determination  before  the  Peace  Conference. 

The  Most  Rev.  Dr.  Fogarty,  in  the  course  of  his  letter,  wrote : 

The  Ard-Fheis  meets  this  year  in  a  fateful  hour.  May  God  inspire  its  delibera- 
tions with  courage  and  wisdom.  It  will  speak  at  any  rate  with  an  Irish  accent 
which  Hugh  O'Neill  will  recognize  as  his  own,  and  of  which  he  and  the  other 
great  fathers  of  Irish  history  will  not  be  ashamed.  You  will  salute  with  honor 
the  brave  Irishmen  who  at  this  moment  are  in  English  dungeons  for  no  other 
crime  than  that  they  have  dared  to  say  that  Ireland  is  a  nation  and  entitled  to 
a  nation's  right  of  freedom. 

Let  the  world  note  the  fact  that  what  the  President  of  the  United  States  de- 
mands as  a  fundamental  right  for  all  the  nationalities  of  the  world,  large  or 
little,  it  is  a  crime  to  ask  for  Ireland.  How  Eamonn  Do  Valera  and  the  other 
heroes  may  be  faring  in  English  prisons  we  are  not  allowed  to  know. 

We  have  learned  something  of  the  brutalities  perpetrated  on  Irish  prisoners 
in  Belfast  jail.  Nothing  more  disgusting  than  that  repulsive  treatment  is  to  be 
found  in  the  most  savage  records  of  oppression.  Just  now,  I  understand,  there 
are  100  of  these  fine  young  boys  sick  of  influenza  in  that  compound  of  tyranny. 

We  know  how  fatal  that  plague  is  and  what  careful  nursing  it  requires.  But 
these  stricken  men.  we  are  told,  are  left  without  nurses,  without  invalid  diet, 
locked  in  their  cells  without  a  soul  to  visit  them  from  5  o'clock  in  the  evening 
until  the  warder  comes  in  the  morning.  And  they  who  do  this  complain  of  the 
treatment  of  prisoners  in  other  countries ;  and  they  will,  perhaps,  when  death 
has  claimed  its  victims,  appoint  a  commission  to  inquire  into  the  case,  with 
another  Judge  Dodd  to  carry  out  the  inquiry. 


144 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


STATEMENT  OF  HON.  P.  D.  NORTON,  REPRESENTATIVE  IN 
CONGRESS  FROM  NORTH  DAKOTA. 

Mr.  Norton.  Mr.  Chairman,  as  there  are  many  who  have  come  a 
great  distance  to  appear  before1  the  committee,  and  as  the  time  of 
this  hearing  is  limited.  I  shall  not  occupy  any  time  of  the  committee 
now  other  than  to  request  leave  to  have  printed  in  the  hearings  an 
argument  in  favor  of  the  resolution  by  Hon.  Michael  H.  Brennan, 
of  Devils  Lake.  N.  Dak.,  a  distinguished  citizen  and  lawyer  of  North 
Dakota,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  and  a  man  who  is  proud  of  his 
Irish  ancestry.  Both  of  Mr.  Brennan's  sons,  James  and  Gerald,  are 
with  the  colors,  wearing  the  khaki,  and  daily  doing  their  part  to  up- 
hold American  principles  and  American  ideals  in  the  war.  Mr.  Bren- 
nan's views  are  briefly  set  forth  in  the  following  statement: 

To  the  honorable  Committee  ox  Foreign  Affairs, 

House  of  Ttepresentactives,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Siks :  In  regard  to  the  resolution  before  yon  in  relation  to  Ireland,  I  beg  leave 
to  submit  the  following : 

The  alleged  position  of  the  allies  is  to  protect  the  smaller  nations  and  secure 
them  in  the  exercise  of  their  national  rights.  The  position  commits  Great 
Britain  to  a  proper  recognition  of  the  right-:  of  the  Irish  nation.  It  is  too  long 
a  tale  to  relate  the  history  of  the  relations  between  Great  Britain  and  Ireland 
since  the  year  1172.  except  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  struggle  has 
lasted  ever  since  without  any  failure  on  the  part  of  Ireland  to  assert  her  right 
to  a  separate  national  existence ;  but  coming  down  to  the  affairs  of  1782,  when 
the  parliament  at  Dublin,  under  the  leadership  of  Grattan,  declared  for  Irish 
Independence,  subject  only  to  the  king,  lords,  and  commons  of  Ireland.  At  that 
time  the  Blackstonian  doctrine  had  so  saturated  the  British  Empire  that  all 
legislation  in  any  part  of  the  British  dominions  was  subject  to  the  action  of  the 
London  Parliament.  In  Ireland  it  had  reached  the  point  where  bills  would 
have  to  be  submitted  to  the  royal  consideration  before  being  introduced,  so  that 
the  function  of  legislation  (so  called)  was  merely  to  register  the  will  of  the 
sovereign. 

The  doctrine  of  Blackstone,  to  which  I  refer,  will  be  readily  found  in  his 
commentaries,  Book  I  (pp.  99  to  104).  By  that  doctrine  Blackstone  had  tried 
to  seal  the  slavery  of  the  Irish  people.  The  doctrine  was  formulated  in  the  6th 
of  George  I  declaring  and  establishing  the  supremacy  of  England  and  the  eternal 
dependency  of  Ireland  on  the  British  Parliament  In  short,  the  underlying 
principle  is  the  dominance  of  England  as  against  any  other  part  of  the  empire. 
This  dominancy  is  distinct  from  the  power  of  the  United  States  Congress  as 
exercised  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  for  here  we  recognize  the  equality  of  all 
the  States,  except  as  to  such  powers  as  are  delegated  to  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment by  the  Constitution,  and  here  we  have  both  branches  of  the  legislature 
composed  of  elective  bodies,  while  in  Great  Britain  one  branch  is  hereditary 
and  necessarily  undemocratic  Consequently,  looking  at  the  relations  of  Ire- 
land to  such  a'  government,  even  though  the  greatest  liberality  were  exercised, 
the  condition  of  the  people  of  Ireland  would  be  one  of  subserviency.  The  con- 
dition of  the  entire  mass  of  the  population  of  the  empire  is  also  subservient 
because  of  the  existence  of  two  classes,  a  plebian  and  an  aristocratic.  Under 
such  a  system  it  would  be  impossible  for  Ireland  to  enjoy  the  rights  of  an  Amer- 
ican State.  The  only  solution  of  the  difficulty  would  be  (1)  a  federation  of  the 
parts  composing  the  empire,  placing  England  on  an  equality  with  each  of  the 
other  countries  and  establishing  a  parliament  for  purely  imperial  affairs,  leav- 
ing to  the  respective  countries  legislative  powers  such  as  our  American  States 
enjoy;  or  (2)  making  Ireland  a  State  of  the  American  Union:  or  (3)  giving  her 
national  independence,  This  last  is  the  dream  of  the  race.  But  in  no  case 
would  the  present  shelved  home-rule  act  fill  the  measure  of  justice  or  give  satis- 
1  art  ion.  because,  first,  it  falls  far  short  of  colonial  legislative  powers  and  of  our 
State  legislative  powers  and  is  always  subject  to  the  simple  act  of  Parliament 
and  could  be  repealed  at  any  time  if  the  mood  of  the  dominant  nation  saw  its 
own  interest  in  such  repeal.  A  guarantee  by  the  dominant  nation  could  not  be 
more  potent  than  an  act  of  Parliament  in  the  absence  of  a  written  constitution. 

The  status  or  condition  of  dominance  and  the  act  of  Parliament  formally 
establishing  the  dependency  of  Ireland  was  at  the  time  of  the  declaration  of 


THE  JRISII  QUESTION. 


145 


Irish  independence,  in  1782,  at  the  acme  of  the  American  crisis,  relinquished  and 
repealed  by  Chapter  LIII,  entitled  "An  act  to  repeal  an  act  made  in  the  sixth 
of  George  of  the  reign  of  the  late  Majesty  George  I,  and  entitled  'An  act  for 
the  better  securing  the  dependency  of  Ireland  upon  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain.'  " 
By  that  act  of  repeal  the  doctrine  of  Blackstone  was  abolished,  and  Ireland  for 
a  short  period  stood  forth  practically  free  and  independent  among  the  nations 
till  the  close  of  the  American  war.  and  the  return  of  Lord  Cornwallis  and  his 
forces  to  Ireland  to  carry  out  the  machinations  of  Pitt,  by  which  the  insurrec- 
tion of  1798  was  fomented  and  finally  the  nefarious  act  of  union  of  1800  was 
passed  by  the  British  Parliament,  and  the  bright  dream  of  independence 
vanished.  Bearing  in  mind  those  matters,  it  will  be  apparent  that  no  parlia- 
mentary guaranties  and  no  treaty  obligations  will  avail  Ireland  under  the  pres- 
ent unwritten  constitution  of  the  Empire,  if  the  interest  of  the  dominant  nation 
or  of  the  London  merchants  deem  Ireland  of  secondary  importance. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  reply  to  what  is  sometimes  said  about  representation  in 
the  British  Parliament.  In  the  face  of  so  large  a  representation  from  Great 
Britain  her  105  members  might  just  as  well  be  much  less  than  that 
number.  The  number  of  representatives  may  have  been  reasonably  propor- 
tionate in  1800.  but  by  a  system  of  rule  which  it  is  unnecessary  to  discuss,  the 
population  of  England  has  steadily  and  enormously  increased  since  then,  while 
the  population  of  Ireland  has  at  least  since  1848  steadily  decreased,  notwith- 
standing the  natural  resources  of  the  country  and  the  well-known  prolific  quali- 
ties of  the  race. 

In  the  discussion  of  the  proposition  for  Irish  autonomy  the  Ulster  question 
will  naturally  be  considered,  and  in  reference  to  that  I  submit  a  few  facts.  In 
1607  James  I  of  England  confiscated  six  counties  of  Ulster,  drove  the  Irish  in- 
habitants therefrom,  and  parceled  out  the  lands  to  Scotch  and  English  colonists 
known  in  the  records  of  the  transaction  by  the  ominous  title  of  "  Undertakers." 
This  flngitious  piece  of  land  piracy  and  robbery  and  extermination  is  known  in 
history  as  the  plantation  of  Ulster.  The  lands  were  distributed  as  follows:  To 
the  Protectant  archbishop  of  Armagh,  43,000  acres  ;  to  Trinity  College,  Dublin, 
a  Protestant  university,  from  which  a  Catholic  could  not  be  granted  a  diploma 
till  after  1829.  30.000  acres:  to  the  Skinners  (another  ominous  name)  the  Dry- 
salters,  and  Cordwainers  corporation  and  trades  of  London,  208.000  acres ;  and 
to  the  Scotch  Presbyterian  and  English  Protestant  all  the  rest  in  parcels  of 
1,000,  1.500.  and  2,000  acres,  and  the  recipient  undertakers  were  obliged  to 
swear  that  "  they  would  not  employ  an  Irish  Catholic  "  or  "  let  them  come  near 
them."  A  slight  reflection  will  readily  suggest  that  an  act  of  confiscation  may 
be  merely  on  paper,  but  the  practical  working  out  of  the  act  may  mean  a  war 
of  extermination.  It  is  unnecessary  to  say  that  the  Irish  struck  back.  Of 
course,  there  were  confiscations  in  1172,  1007,  1035.  and  1688-1690.  The  com- 
mission appointed  to  report  on  the  confiscations  of  1688-1690  reported  an  aggre- 
gate confiscation  of  over  a  million  and  sixty  thousand  acres.  A  sample  of  the 
variety  of  causes  for  such  is  one  where  William  of  Orange  bestowed  95.000 
acres  of  Irish  land  on  the  Countess  of  Orkney,  a  lady  who  had  inspired  him, 
much  to  the  embarrassment  of  the  public  and  the  unhappiness  of  his  lawful 
wife  at  The  Hague. 

It  will  be  readily  seen  that  with  Government  backing  and  with  fixity  of 
tenure  of  lands  in  Ulster,  and  in  many  cases  title  in  fee  simple,  while  the  people 
in  other  parts  of  Ireland  were  holding  under  tenancies  at  will,  the  development 
in  Ulster  would,  when  compared  to  that  of  the  rest  of  Ireland,  appear  much  to 
the  advantage  of  the  people  of  Ulster,  especially  those  specially  favored  and 
protected,  but  the  reason  is  obvious. 

It  is  claimed  that  if  Ireland  had  home  rule  to  include  all  Ireland,  the 
Catholics  of  the  south  would  legislate  adversely  to  the  Protestants  of  the  north, 
and  that  Ulster  for  that  reason  should  be  left  out  of  the  measure:  but  in  such 
a  case  the  Catholics  of  the  north  would  be  at  a  great  disadvantage  as  against 
the  other  denominations  if  the  objection  raised  is  in  this  age  deserving  of 
consider;1  tion.  An  Analysis  of  the  situation  on  the  basis  of  population  will 
readily  show  that  the  objection  that  Ulster  does  not  want  home  rule  is  by 
no  means  sustained  by  the  figures,  when  we  bear  in  mind  that  the  agitation 
is  not  confined  merely  to  Catholics,  and  that  Lister  sends  a  majority  for  home 
rule  to  Parliament.  Let  us  see :  The  following  table  of  population  was 
published  recently  in  the  Literary  Digest.  I  believe,  and  is  still  of  value  for 
purposes  of  comparison.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  chief  grounds  of 
the  Carsonite  opposition  to  national  autonomy,   as  given  by  that  English 


97017—19  10 


146 


THE  IKISH  QUESTION. 


garrison  in  Ireland  is  that  the  alleged  fear  that  as  the  remainder  of  Ireland 
is  largely  Catholic,  the  Protestants  of  Ulster  would  be  at  a  disadvantage, 
and  oven  at  the  mercy  of  Catholics,  notwithstanding  the  imperial  guaranties, 
but  they  are  willing  to  divide  the  country,  let  the  remainder  of  Ireland  have 
autonomy,  and  let  Ulster  have  a  separate  government  Whether  they  would 
still  have  control  of  Ulster  may  he  judged  by  the  table  of  population  and  the 
proportion  of  the  respective  religious  divisions.  There  are  nine  counties  in 
Ulster,  and  the  proportion  of  Catholics  to  Protestants  in  the  whole  of  Ulster 
is  as  7  to  0. 


Name  of  countv. 


Antrim  

Belfast  Horough  

Armagh  

Londonderry  

Londonderry  Borough. 

Down  

Cavan  

Donegal  

Fermanagh  

Monaehan  


Tyrone. 

Total,  exclusive  of  citv  of  Londonderry 
Deduct  Catholics  


Total 
population. 


193,804 
380,947 
120,291 
94,849 
40,  781 
204,303 
91,173 
108,537 
01,830 
71,455 
142,005 


,535,920 
080,553 


Total  Protestant,  except  Derry  city   855, 307 


Percentage  Catholic 
ofCatholics.  population. 


20.  5 
24.1 
45.  3 
45.8 


31.0 
81.5 
78.9 
50.2 
74.7 
55.  4 


48, 400 
92, 807 
54,491 
45, 720 


04,559 
74,305 
132,976 
34,757 
53,376 
79,036 


080,553 


As  the  proportion  of  Catholics  to  Protestants  in  the  county  of  Londonderry 
is  45.8  to  54.2,  we  may  assume  that  a  like  proportion  prevails  in  the  city  of 
Londonderry,  and  in  that  case  the  40,780  give  above  would  be  divided :  Catholics, 
18,077;  Protestants,  22,103.  P»ut  suppose  we  make  it  two  Protestants  to  one 
Catholic,  we  then  have  Catholics,  13,593;  Protestants.  27,187.  Adding  these  to 
the  totals  already  given,  we  have  for  the  entire  Province:  Protestant,  882,554; 
Catholic,  694,140,  in  the  proportion  of  9  to  7,  as  before  stated. 

If  we  deduct  the  Protestant  population  of  Belfast  Borough  (380.947)  from 
the  total  number  of  Protestants  in  Ulster  (882,554),  we  get  495,607  for  the 
remainder  of  the  Province  of  Ulster.  In  other  words.  Ulster,  outside  of  Belfast 
Borough,  has  a  majority  of  198,539  Catholics — 694.146  Catholics  minus  495,607 
Protestants. 

If  the  question  were  submitted  to  a  vote  by  counties,  it  is  evident  that  if 
religious  preferences  decided,  the  counties  of  Cavan,  Donegal,  Monaghan,  Ferma- 
nagh, and  Tyrone  would  vote  for  home  rule,  and  it  is  very  likely  that  the 
counties  of  Armagh  and  Londonderry  would  do  likewise,  each  being  over  45 
per  cent  Catholic.  The  Protestants  of  Antrim,  Belfast  Borough,  and  Down 
would  possibly  bo  against  home  rule  for  all  Ireland,  and  in  that  case  the 
Catholics  of  these  last-named  counties  would  be  subject  to  the  disadvantages 
from  their  separated  brethren  that  the  latter  pretend  to  fear  from  Catholics. 
At  this  stage  of  the  world's  history  and  development,  the  position  of  the  fol- 
lowers of  Edward  Carson  is  untenable,  since  it  could  not  be  logically  held;  but, 
nevertheless,  literary  pabulum  of  that  kind  is  continuously  doled  out  for  the 
use  of  people  of  that  kind  of  mentality. 

So  much  for  figures.  It  will  be  recalled  that  during  Parnell's  time  Justin 
McCarthy  carried  Londonderry  by  a  small  majority,  and  that  a  Mr.  Devlin,  a 
home  ruler,  is  member  for  a  division  of  Belfast.  So  that  in  case  of  a  vote  of  all 
Ulster  on  the  rpiestion,  there  is  a  big  fighting  chance  to  win  for  self-determina- 
tion.   But  there  is  no  question  of  a  majority  of  the  counties  voting  for  it. 

I  have  not  referred  to  the  services  that  the  Irish  race,  both  as  native  andi 
adopted  citizens  of  this  Republic,  have  rendered  the  Stars  and  Stripes,  or  to  the 
civic  gains  the  Republic  has  made  through  them.  I  have  not  referred  to  Ire- 
land's history,  aside  from  the  few  political  turning  points  cited,  nor  to  the 
increase  of  wealth — mental,  moral,  and  physical — that  history  must  credit  to 
Ireland.  Americans  should  know  of  these  matters.  But,  regardless  of  them, 
and  in  the  light  of  the  new  freedom  proclaimed  by  our  distinguished  President,- 
I  claim  that  the  American  Congress  should  place  itself  on  record  as  favoring  the 
placing  of  Ireland  among  the  nations  of  the  earth,  so  that  she  may  be  inspired 
to  develop,  expand,  and  prosper  to  the  full  measure  of  her  talents  and  resources. 
I  was  born  within  the  triangle  whose  vertices  rest  in  Wyoming,  Valley  Forge, 
and  Gettysburg,  and  my  whole  heart  beseeches  my  fellow  countrymen  in  the 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


14  7 


name  of  that  trinity  of  national  shrines  to  place  themselves  on  record, as  de- 
manding for  Ireland  what  Ireland  has  given  her  best  blood  to  preserve  for 
the  United  States — the  right  of.  self-government. 

Very  respectfully.  M.  H.  Brexnan. 

STATEMENT  OF  HON.  THOMAS  GALLAGHER,  A  REPRESENTATIVE 
IN  CONGRESS  FROM  ILLINOIS. 

Mr.  Gallagher.  Mr.  Chairman,  in  closing  the  hearings  that  your 
committee  so  generously  and  unanimously  granted  upon  resolution 
357.  introduced  by  me,  I  feel  that  the  many  delegates  present,  as  well 
as  myself,  are  greatly  indebted  to  your  committee  for  their  sympathy 
and  kindness. 

It  was  not  my  intention  to  take  up  any  of  the  time  of  the  com- 
mittee this  morning  with  my  remarks,  but  a  question  has  been  asked 
by  several  members  of  the  committee  as  to  what  form  of  government 
they  will  have  in  Ireland  if  self-determination  is  granted,  and 
whether  the  Sinn  Fein  or  Irish  Republic  Party  in  Ireland  believe 
in  personal  and  religious  freedom.  I  am  going  to  ask  permission 
of  the  committee  for  a  few  minutes  to  answer  that  question  and  to 
read  for  the  benefit  of  the  committee  excerpts  from  the  proclamation, 
of  the  provisional  government  of  the  Irish  republic  as  published  to 
the  world  by  them  on  April  23, 1916,  on  the  occasion  of  Ireland's  most 
recent  uprising  to  assert  her  natural  rights. 

PROCLAMATION  OF  IRISH  REPUBLIC. 

We  declare  the  right  of  the  people  of  Ireland  to  the  ownership  of  Ireland 
and  to  the  unfettered  control  of  Irish  destinies,  to  he  sovereign  and  indefeasible. 
The  long  usurpation  of  that  right  by  a  foreign  people  and  government  has  not 
extinguished  the  right,  nor  can  it  ever  be  extinguished  except  by  the  destruction 
of  the  Irish  people.  In  every  generation  the  Irish  people  have  asserted  their 
right  to  national  freedom  and  sovereignty ;  six  times  during  the  past  three 
hundred  years  they  have  asserted  it  in  arms.  Standing  on  that  fundamental 
right  and  again  asserting  it  in  arms  in  the  face  of  the  world,  we  hereby  proclaim 
the  Irish  republic  as  a  sovereign  independent  State,  and  we  pledge  our  lives  and 
the  lives  of  our  comrades  in  arms  to  the  cause  of  its  freedom,  of  its  welfare,  and 
of  its  exaltation  among  the  nations. 

The  Irish  republic  is  entitled  to,  and  hereby  claims,  the  allegiance  of  every 
Irishman  and  Irishwoman.  The  republic  guarantees  religious  and  civil  liberty, 
equal  rights,  and  equal  opportunities  to  all  its  citizens,  and  declares  its  resolve 
to  pursue  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  the  whole  nation  and  of  all  its  parts, 
cherishing  all  the  children  of  the  nation  equally,  and  oblivious  of  the  differences 
carefully  fostered  by  an  alien  government,  which  have  divided  a  minority  from 
the  majority  in  the  past. 

Until  our  arms  have  brought  the  opportune  moment  for  the  establishment  of  a 
permanent  national  government,  representative  of  the  whole  people  of  Ireland 
and  elected  by  the  suffrages  of  all  her  men  and  women,  the  provisional  govern- 
ment, hereby  constituted,  will  administer  the  civil  and  military  affairs  of  the 
republic  in  trust  for  the  people. 

We  place  the  cause  of  the  Irish  republic  under  the  protection  of  the  Most  High 
God,  whose  blessing  we  invoke  upon  our  arms,  and  we  pray  that  no  one  who 
serves  that  cause  will  dishonor  it  by  cowardice,  inhumanity,  or  rapine.  In  this 
supreme  hour  the  Irish  nation  must,  by  its  valor  and  discipline  and  by  the  readi- 
ness of  its  children  to  sacrifice  themselves  for  the  common  good,  prove  itself 
worthy  of  the  august  destiny  to  which  it  is  called. 

Signed  on  behalf  of  the  provisional  government. 

Thomas  J.  Clarke. 
Sean  aLacDiarmada. 
P.  H.  Pearse. 

i  .  James  Connolly. 

Thomas  MacDonagh. 
,J •-'  "  Eamonn  Ceannt. 

Joseph  Plunkett. 


148 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


Mr. , Chairman,  these  are  the  same  principles  that  gave  birth  to  this 
Republic.  They  are  the  principles  thai  have  immortalized  Thomas 
Jenerson,  and  that  were  signed  so  boldly  by  John  Hancock.  They  are 
the  principles  for  which  Washington  fought  and  Lincoln  died,  "  that 
a  Government  of  the  people,  by  tlx4  people,  and  for  the  people  shall  not 
perish  from  the  earth."  [Applause.]  They  are  the  principles  that 
President  Wilson  will  contend  for  in  the  peace  conference  at  Ver- 
sailles, so  that  "governments  shall  derive  their  just  powers  from  the 
consent  of  the  governed."  They  are  the  self -same  principles  for 
which  we  so  willingly  sent  2,(100,000  of  our  best  men  across  3.000  miles 
of  ocean,  a  new  world  Army,  that  turned  defeat  into  victory  upon  the 
battle  fields  of  France.  They  are  the  principles  that  prompted  us  to 
give  up  our  money  and  float  billions  in  liberty  bonds  "to  make  the 
world  safe  for  democracy."  These  are  living  principles  that  will 
never  die,  and  as  long  as  oppression  and  tyranny  exist  and  liberty  yet 
has  friends  and  lovers,  the  struggle  for  Irish  independence  will  never 
cease,  not  until  Ireland  stands  before  the  world  a  nation  once  again. 
|  Applause.] 

I  wish  again  to  thank  the  committee  for  their  kind  consideration 
and  for  the  extension  of  time  they  have  so  kindly  granted  the  many 
delegations  present. 

The  Chairman.  A  motion  is  made  and  seconded  that  5,000  copies 
of  these  hearings  be  printed.  All  in  favor  of  this  motion  will  make 
it  known  by  "Aye." 

The  motion  was  unanimously  carried. 


Appendix. 

Telegrams,  letters,  and  petitions  favorable  to  the  resolution  have  been  re- 
ceived by  Hon.  Jeanette  Rankin.  Member  of  Congress  from  Montana,  from  the 
following  associations,  societies,  and  public  men: 

Citizens  of  Santa  Clara  County,  Cal. 

Bishop  of  Great  Falls.  Mont.,  for  the  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom. 

Daniel  Tracey,  chairman  Democratic  central  committee.  Great  Falls,  Mont. 

().  S.  Warden,  manager  Great  Falls  Tribune  (Montana). 

K.  H.  Cooney,  editor  Great  Falls  Leader  and  chairman  council  of  defense  of 
Montana.  *  • 

State  Senator  Burlingame,  Montana. 
United  Irish  Societies  of  San  Francisco,  Gal. 
Lady  Hibernians.  Division  No.  1,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Friends  of  Irish  Freedom  Society.  Oakland,  Cal. 
County  board.  Ladies'  Auxiliary,  A.  O.  H.,  San  Francisco. 
Robert  Emmet  Association,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Irish  societies,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 
Women's  Irish  League,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Cork  Society,  San  Francisco,  pal. 
Knights  of  the  Red  Branch,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Indian  Nationalist  Party,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
United  Order  Of  Hibernians,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 
Young  Ladies'  Institute,  of  8.000  women,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Ladies'  Auxiliary,  A.  O.  H.,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 
Cork  societies  of  the  Pacific  coast. 

Sixty-two  Irish  societies  in  convention  at  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
The  O'Rahilly  Branch,  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Seattle,  Wash. 
Women  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 
Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 
Women  Friends  of  Ireland,  La  Porte,  Ind. 
Minister  Men's  Association.  San  Francisco,  Cal. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


149 


Gaelic  Athletic  Association  of  California. 

United  Irish  Societies,  Chicago,  111. 

Irish  Societies  of  Butte.  Mont. 

Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  Great  Falls,  Mont. 

Deer  Lodge  County  A.  O.  H.,  Montana. 

Phil  Sheridan  Club  of  Anaconda,  Mont. 

Emmet  Literary  Association.  Butte.  Mont. 

Mi;e>  City  Trades  and  Labor  Council.  Montana. 

Women  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom.  Petersburg.  Near. 

Emmet  Monument  Association.  Omaha.  Nebr. 

St.  Enda's  Literary  Society.  Camden.  N.  J. 

Women  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom.  Portland,  Oreg. 

Ladies'  Auxiliary.  A.  O.  H.,  Seattle,  Wash. 

Besides  many  letters  and  telegrams  from  individuals. 

Telegrams,  letters,  and  petitions  favorable  to  the  resolution  have  been  re- 
ceived by  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  from  the  following  associations, 
societies,  and  public  men : 

Irish  Societies  of  Houston,  Tex. 

Irish  citizens  of  Norfolk  and  Portsmouth,  Va. 

Meeting  of  citizens.  December  8,  1918,  Woonsocket,  R.  I. 

Fraternal  Order  of  Eagles,  Woonsocket,  R.  I. 

Division  No.  6.  A.  O.  H..  Providence,  R.  I. 

Holy  Name  Society.  Woonsocket,  R.  I. 

United  Irish  Societies  of  Pawtncket  and  Blackstone  Valley,  li.  I. 

Citizens  of  Providence.  R.  L 

Ladies'  Auxiliary,  A.  O.  H.,  of  Rhode  Island. 

Ancient  Order" of  Hibernians  of  Maryland. 

Ladies'  Auxiliary.  A.  <  >.  H.,  Chicago,  111. 

Citizens  of  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Friends  of  Ireland.  Pittsburgh.  Pa. 

Municipal  officials  of  the  city  of  Pittsfon,  Pa. 

Irish  societies,  Dubois,  Pa. 

Company  B.  Irish  Volunteers.  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Twenty-two  branches  of  Irish  Nationalists.  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Gaelic  League,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Citizens  of  Syracuse.  N.  Y. 

D.  H.  Comber  Club.  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

A.  (».  H.  divisions.  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Irish  societies,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

A.  O.  H.  and  Ladies'  Auxiliary,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 

Citizens  of  Mineral  County.  Mont. 

Citizens  of  Deer  Lodge.  Mont. 

Citizens  of  Glasgow,  Mont. 

Citizens  of  Lewis  town,  Mont. 

Citizens  of  Butte,  Mont.,  including  lieutenant  governor,  mayor,  judge  of  dis- 
trict court,  sheriff,  district  judge,  and  various  other  officials  and  clergymen, 
presidents  of  banks,  high-school  professors,  chairman  board  of  county  commis- 
sioners, editors,  and  State  president. of  metal  trades. 

Anaconda  Mill  and  Smelter  Union,  Mont. 

Ex-Gov.  Edward  F.  Dunne,  Chicago,  111. 

Mayor  William  Hale  Thompson.  Chicago,  111. 

Bishop  E.  J.  O'Dea,  of  Seattle.  Wash*  and  rectors  of  Seattle  diocese. 
United  American  Irish  Societies,  Tacoma.  Wash. 
Central  Labor  Council.  Tacoma,  Wash. 
Citizens  of  Seattle.  Wash. 

United  American  Irish  Societies,  Spokane,  Wash. 
Irish  Societies,  Seattle,  Wash. 
Citizens  of  Fond  du  Lac,  Wis. 
American  citizens  of  Houston,  Tex. 
Division  No.  72,  A.  O.  H..  Boston.  Mass. 
United  Irish  Societies  of  Lowell,  Mass. 
Hibernians  of  Leominster,  Mass. 
A.  O.  H.,  Pittsheld.  Mass. 

Thomas  J.  Clark  Branch.  Friends  of  Freedom,  Westtield,  Mass. 
Division  No.  IT.  A.  O.  H.,  Atlantic,  Mass. 
Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Westtield,  Mass. 


L50 


THE  IKISH  QUESTION. 


Massachusetts  Council,  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom, 

Thomas  Asiu>  Branch,  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Holyoke,  Mass. 

Padraic  Pearse  Branch,  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Springfield,  Mass. 

Citizens  of  Palatka,  Fla. 

Citizens  of  St.  Augustine,  Fla. 

<  Jit  Izens  of  Miami,  Flali 

<  Mt  izens  of  Tampa,  Fla. 
Citizens  of  Jacksonville,  Fla. 

<  Mt  izens  of  <  Orlando,  Fla. 
Citizens  Of  San  Antonio.  Fla, 

Building  Trades  Council.  Santa  Clara  County,  Cal. 

Company  A.  Irish  Volunteers,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Citizens  Of  Oakland.  Cal. 

Wolfe-Tone  Society,  San  Francisco.  Cal. 

Cork  Benevolent  Association.  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

United  American  Irish  Societies,  Alameda  County,  Cal. 

Citizens  of  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 

Board  of  Supervisors  Qf  the  City  and  County  of  San  Francisco. 

Golden  Gate  Aerie,  Fraternal  order  of  Eagles,  San  Francisco, 

Gaelic  League  Societies  of  California. 

Knights  of  Columbus  branches,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Hibernian  Dramatic  Club,  San  Francisco. 

Connaught  Social  Benevolent  Association,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
John  McBride  Association,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Spanish  War  Veterans,  A.  O.  H.,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
Labor  organizations,  San  Jose,  Cal. 

Ulster  Celtic  Benevolent  Association,  San  Francisco,  Cal.  ■ 
•Citizens  of  Troy.  N.  Y. :  mass  meeting  at  Music  Hall. 
Davitt  Club,  Hartford,  Conn. 

Connecticut  State  Convention  of  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom. 

American  citizens  of  Irish  birth,  Auditorium  Theater,  Baltimore,  Md. 

Hon.  John  W.  Goff,  justice  of  New  York  Supreme  Court 

Oumann  na  m  Ban,  New  York. 

Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Brighton,  Mass. 

Brotherhood  of  Railway  Clerks,  Pittsburgh*  Pa. 

County  Galway  Men's  Association,  Boston.  Mass. 

Citizens  of  Jamaica,  Long  Island,  N.  Y. 

President,  faculty,  and  student-  of  the  University  of  Notre  Dame,  Notre 
Dame,  Ind. 

American  citizens  of  Jacksonville.  Fla. 

Metal  Trades  Council,  Seattle,  Wash. 

United  Irish  Society?  Chicago,  111. 

Boston  Common  mass  meeting.  Boston,  Mass. 

Skenandoah  Clnb.  New  York.  N.  Y. 

Women  citizens,  New  York.  N.  Y. 
•  Irish  County  clubs,  New  York  City. 

Carmelite  branch  of  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  New  York  City. 

Irish  Societies  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Gaelic  League,  New  York  State. 

Gaelic  Athletic  Association.  New  York  City. 

Friends  of  Ireland  Association.  New  York  City. 

Women  Friends  of  Ireland.  New  York  City. 

Irish  Progressive  League,  New  York  City. 

County  Louth  Association.  New  York  City. 

Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

Friends  of  Ireland,  Rochester,  N.  Y. 

Madison  Square  Garden  meeting,  New  York  City. 

Philadelphia  Academy  of  Music  petition. 

Citizens  of  Wilmington,  Del. 

United  Irish  American  Societies  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 
Emmet  Association,  New  York  City. 
Committee  of  1.000  women.  New  York  City. 

George  Washington  Branch  of  Friends  of  Irish  Freedom,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

The  1776  Club,  New  York  City. 

Irish  Women's  Council,  New  York  City. 

Thomas  McDonough  Branch  of  Irish  Freedom,  New  York  City. 


THE  IRISH  QUESTION. 


151 


Charles  Stewart  Parnell  Club,  New  York  City. 
Citizens  of  New  Brighton,  N.  Y. 
Women  citizens  of  Harlem,  New  York  City. 
United  Irish  Societies  of  New  York  City. 
Celtic  Council,  Royal  Arcanum,  New  York  City. 
Citizens'  mass  meeting  of  Seattle,  Wash. 

President  and  faculty  of  Duquesne  University,  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 
Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  of  Minnesota. 
Irish  History  Club,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 
Citizens  of  Denver,  Colo. 
Division  No.  1,  A.  O.  H.,  Danbury,  Conn. 
Untied  Irish  Societies  of  Torrington,  Conn. 
Irish  Societies  of  New  Britain,  Conn. 
Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians  of  New  Haven,  Conn. 
Worcester^  Mass.,  citizens'  mass  meeting  for  the  freedom  of  Ireland. 
Telegram  from  John  J.  O'Connor,  Kansas  City,  Mo..  State  president  Ancient 
Order  of  Hibernians. 

Citizens  of  Sharon,  Pa.,  and  vicinity. 
People  of  La  Salle  and  Peru,  111. 
Citizens  of  Indianapolis,  Ind. 

Division  No.  72,  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  Boston,  Mass. 
Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  Division  No.  1.  of  Manchester,  N.  H. 
The  County  Galway  Men's  Benevolent  Association  of  Greater  Boston. 
Allied  Irish-American  societies  and  Friends,  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 
Citizens  of  New  York  City,  at  a  mass  meeting  held  at  Corpus  Christi  Hall. 
President  and  faculty  of  Duquesne  University,  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 
Public  meeting  held  under  auspices  of  the  united  Irish  societies  of  Woon- 
soeket. 

State  convention  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  at  Lewiston,  Me. 
Ancient  Order  of  Hibernians,  J.  H.  Nightingale,  J.  J.  Fitzgerald,  and  Martin 
Crahen,  committee. 

Telegram  from  Leo  J.  McCarthy  and  M.  M.  Roach,  representing  Knights  of 
Columbus  of  Oakland,  Cal. 

Telegram  from  the  united  Irish-American  societies  of  Alameda  County,  Cal. 
Besides  many  letters  and  telegrams  from  individuals. 

Letters  opposing  the  resolution  have  been  received  by  the  Committee  on 
Foreign  Affairs  as  follows : 
Ulster  Society  of  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 
Philadelphia  Protestant  Federation. 


IXDEX 


A. 

Page. 

Act  of  renunciation,  1783.  England  yielding  all  claims  to  rule  Ireland  G7. 142 

Act  of  union,  corrupt  passage  and  results   28,  61.  05, 101, 112, 138,  141-142 

Act  of  union,  attitude  of  Catholic  Irish  toward  '  65-66 

Ahern,  Thomas  J.,  presents  petition.!   130 

Alleged  German  plot  in  Ireland,  1918   111 

America,  the  world's  arbiter  9, 16,  73 

American  aspect  of  the  Irish  issue   106 

American  Congress  to  Irish  parliament   107 

American  relations  in  future  to  England   85 

American  intervention  in  European  affairs   47,51.52.66,72.73 

American  labor  supports  Ireland's  demands—  24,  30,  46,  48,  40.  79.  94,  98, 12S.  134 

"American  Loyalists"  and  "  Ulster  Loyalists  "   116 

American  petitions  supporting  Ireland's  claims  14S-151 

Anticonscription,  Ireland  1_  60,70-72,109,112 

Anri-Irish  propaganda   66,  74, 109 

Appendix  148-151 

Telegrams,  letters,  petitions,  and  resolutions  in  regard  to  Irish  question. 
"Arrest  of  Irish  leaders  and  election  directors  without  trial  _  88,90,143 

B. 

Barrett,  Hon.  George  P..  statement  of   19 

Blake,  Hon.  Edward,  on  overtaxing  Ireland   45 

Boston  resolutions   134 

Brennan,  Hon.  Michael  H.,  letter  from   144 

British  Army,  Irishmen  in   42,  69,  71, 124. 125 

Brumbaugh.  Hon.  Clement,  statement  of    

Brutal  treatment  of  Irish  Republicans,  1918  ^   143 

Caldwell,  Hon.  Charles  Pope,  statement  of   99 

Can  Ireland  exist  unaided  139. 142 

Gary,  Hon.  William  J.,  statement  of   82 

Carson's  rebellion,  1914,  engineered  from  London  117-11S 

Catholics,  attitude  to  act  of  union  ■  61,65-66 

Catholics  in  American  Revolutionary  Army   64-65.130 

Central  Labor  Unions,  resolutions  of  4(5-47 

Christ.  Mrs.  Adelia.  statement  of   29 

Chamberlain,  Arthur,  on  Irish  industries   75 

Childer  s  Commission,  report  of   44-45,141 

Clancy,  J.  M.,  statement  of  :   29 

Coercion  acts,  100,  imposed  on  Ireland  112, 115 

Cohalan,  Hon.  Daniel  F.,  letter  from   80 

Colum,  Padraic,  statements  of  43,  90 

Confederation  of  Kilkenny  and  Religious  Freedom  67, 13S 

Confiscations  in  Ireland   145 

Congress  of  Vienna  81, 121 

Congress  made  war  and  can  instruct  envoys  83, 12S 

Congressmen's  message  to  Lloyd  George  20-21, 102 

Constitution  of  Irish  Republic   S9 

153 


154 


INDEX. 


Page. 

Coyne,  Thomas,  statement  of   49 

Oronan,  Patrick,  presents  resolutions   82 

Curley,  Hon.  John  J.,  statement  of  !   143 

D. 

Dalton,  Richard  F.,  statement?  of___  14,55 

Delaney,  Hon.  .John  J.,  statements  of  '   100 

Depopulation  of  Ireland  12,17,47.70 

De  Valera,  Eamon,  president  of  provisional  government  125,148 

Dever,  Hon.  William  10.,  letter  from   98 

Disfranchised  Catholics   65 

Dolan,  Charles  .1..  statement  of  27,46 

Donohoe,  Hon.  Michael  F.,  statement  of   53 

Doyle.  T.  J.,  statement  of   133 

Dungannon  Convention,  Irish  volunteers  117,130 

Dunn.  Prof.  Joseph,  statement  of   129 

Dunne.  Hon.  E.  F„  letter  from  (   97 

Dwyer,  Richard   54 

E. 

Economic  situation  in  Ireland   139 

Eagan,  Hon.  John  J.,  statement  of  .  T   50 

Election  conditions  in  Ireland  :  89-90 

England's  failure  in  Ireland  47, 101 

England's  record  of  infamy  1   142 

"English  Aspect  of  the  Irish  Issue"  109-112 

English  Labor  Party   43,73.132 

English  pledges  no  guaranty  for  Ireland   145 

Exchequers  of  Ireland  and  England  amalgamated   141 

F. 

Fay.  Thomas  P..  statement  of   26 

Penelon,  Rev.  John  P.,  statement  of   82 

Fitzgerald,  James  J   54 

Fitzgerald,  Patrick  v..  presents  Pittsburgh  resolutions   82 

Flag  of  Ireland   67 

Fleets  of  England  and  Ireland  :   12 

Flood,  Henry,  as  Irish  statesman   33,40,67 

For  telegrams,  letters,  petitions,  and  resolutions  in  regard  to  this  ques-  • 
tion,  see  Appendix,  pp.  148-151. 

Fox.  George  L..  statement  of  57-58 

Fogarty,  Rev.  Dr.,  letter  of  +   143 

Freedom  of  small  nations   7.15.27,36,50,91-93 

G. 

Gallagher,  Hon.  Thomas,  statements  of  3,147 

Gallivan,  Hon.  James  A.,  statements  of  20,102 

Ga  vegan.  Hon.  Edward  J.,  letter  from   137 

German  Army,  Irishmen  in   60 

German  conspiracy  in  Ireland,  alleged   Ill- 
German  rifles  in  Ulster  111-118 

Germany-Belgium  :  England-Ireland   111 

Goff,  Hon.  George,  resolutions  presented   18-19 

Gorman,  Hon.  George,  statement  of   10 

Grace.  Hon.  John  P.,  telegram  from   137 

Graham.  John,  statement  of   81 

Grattans  Irish  Parliament   40,67.101 

Griffith,  Arthur  68,77 

H. 


Hal li nan.  Rev.  Dr..  letter  from  

Hamill,  Hon.  James  A.,  statement  of. 
Hearn.  John  J.,  statement  of  


142 
25 
77 


INDEX. 


155 


Page. 

"Hidden  Phase  of  American  History"  (O'Brien)   130 

Hodgson.  Hon.  L.  G..  letter  from  ,   30 

Howard.  Rev.  Timothy,  statement  of  ..   31 

Hughes,  Katherine.  statement  of   64 

Hnrton.  Rev.  Thomas  J.,  statement  of   105 

I. 

Industries  of  Ireland  and  their  destruction   41.  43.  74, 140. 141 

Industries  of  Ireland  and  Arthur  Chamberlain  s  views  75-76 

Industries  of  Ireland,  various  handicaps  upon   41.  74-77. 13S.  140-141 

Industries  of  Ireland,  present  handicaps  imposed   41 

Indemnity  to  Ireland   142 

Interdependence  of  States   44 

"  International  Aspects  of  Irish  Issue  "  121-126 

Ireland,  a  nation___^   7.  36.  47.  84. 114. 142. 147 

Ireland  and  international  problem  56.  So.  S7, 121-126 

Ireland,  attitude  of  in  great  war   69 

Ireland  gave  over  6*  per  cent  population  to  army   69 

Ireland,,  case  of,  for  the  peace  conference   74 

Ireland,  case  of.  if  located  in  central  Europe   52 

Ireland,  crimeless  as  described  by  Maxwell   40 

Ireland,  dauntless  persistence  of  struggle   115 

Ireland,  invasions  of  2S.  56 

Ireland,  five  armed  rebellions  in  last  125  years  66. 113 

Ireland.  "  Key  of  the  Atlantic  "   123 

Ireland,  national  demand  of  85-86. 144 

Ireland,  partition  of  6^.  84 

Ireland,  other  small  nations  compared   8. 15.  46.  91. 100. 120-122 

Ireland,  population  of  —  12,17,68,139 

Ireland,  depopulation  of  12.17.47.70 

Ireland,  prosperity  of  under  Irish  Parliament  40.101 

Ireland,  religious  freedom  guaranteed  in   43—44.  67.  89,  146 

Ireland,  revenue  of__ .   139 

Ireland,  taxation  of   141 

Ireland,  overtaxation  of  2s.  44-4d.  122.  141 

Ireland,  taxation  increased  during  war  .   46 

Ireland,  resources  of   141 

Ireland,  summary  of  history   28 

Ireland,  test  of  sincerity  of  allied  war  aims   126 

Ireland,  value  of,  in  league  of  nations   122 

'•Ireland's  Plea  for  Freedom'"  (Malouey)  106-126 

-  Irish  Aspect  of  Irish  Issue  "  112-116 

Irish  convention  framed  in  London.  1917..   110 

Irish  leaders  in  prison   88-90, 110. 143 

Irish  Parliament.  1782-1SOO   40.  61.  67. 101.  113 

Irish  rebellions___  18.66.  Ill 

Irish  republic,  constitution  of   89 

Irish  republic,  financial  outlook  of  122.139 

Irish  republic,  flag  of   67 

Irish  republic,  proclamation  of   147 

Irish-American  mothers  of  soldiers   34 

Irishmen  in  American  Revolution  l          31.  33.  38,  65. 107-108 

Irishmen  in  recent  world  war   25.  42.  69. 105. 124-«12n 

Irishwomen  and  conscription   72 

Irishwomen,  votes  of   88 

Jolly.  Mrs.  Ellen  Ryan,  statement  of   32 

K. 

Kelly,  Dr.  John    54 

Kennedy.  Hon.  Ambrose,  statement  of   5 

Kirwin.  Rev.  William  J.,  statement  of   101 


156 


INDEX. 


L. 

Page. 

Labor  in  America  supports  Ireland's  claims   23, 

30,  40,  4N  49,  7'.).  94,  98,  128^  132, 134 

Labor  in  Britain  favors  self-determination   7:; 

Lnhor  Parly  of  Ireland   47 

Leahy,  John  P.,  statement  of   128 

Lenox,  Prof.  P.  .!..  statement  of   139 

Lloyd-Ceorge  convention  I   110 

bonergan,  Hon.  Augustine,  statement  of   128 

Lynch,  Diarmuid,  statement  of  :   87 

Lyons,  Bernard,  statement  of-   134 

M. 

MacXeill,  Prof.  Loin  43,125 

MacCabe,  Rev.  F.  X.,  statement  of   9 

MacOartan,  Dr.  Patrick,  statement  of  j   8(5 

MacDonough,  Stephen  J.,  statement  of   30 

MaeKenna,  Peter  .L,  statement  of   130 

MacLoughlin,  Hon.  Joseph,  statements  of  13,35 

MaeNamara,  Th'os.  J.,  statement  of   94 

MnoWhortor,  Mrs.  Mary  F.,  statement  of   33 

Maloney,  Dr.  William  J.  M.  A.,  pamphlet  100-120 

Mansion  House  address  to  President  Wilson   109 

Men  of  military  age  in  Ireland   71 

Message  from  congressmen  to  Lloyd  George  20,21,102 

Militarism  in  Ireland.  _   28-29,47,88 

Minority  in  Ireland,  safeguards  for   43-44,  89, 140 

Montague,  Hugh,  statement  of   133 

MorriSsey,  .Tames  J   54 

Moran,  P.  T.,  statement  of   101 

Mothers'  mission  to  Washington   3,34 

Murphy,  John  A.,  statement  of   39' 

N. 

Navy  League  of  England  covets  Irish  ports   123 

New   York  American,  editorial  ,   132 

New  York  resolutions  ,   14 

Nolan,  Hon.  John  J.,  statement  of   131 

Norton,  Hon.  P.  T.,  statement  of   144 

O. 

O'Connell,  Cardinal,  speech  of  i  ^   14 

O'Connor,  John  P.,  statement  of   98 

O'Dea,  John,  statement  of   138 

O'Donnell,  Rev.  Philip  J.,  statement  of   22 

O'Donohue,  Hon.  P.  J.,  statement  of   134 

O'Shaunnessy,  Hon.  George  F.,  statement  of  !   101 

O'Sullivan,  Humphrey,  statement  of   78 

O'Hagerty,  Patrick,  statement  of   78 

Overtaxation  of  Ireland  '_  28,44-40,122,141 

P. 

Partition  of  Ireland  i  08,  84 

Peace  Conference,  Ireland's  case  at  74,88 

Phelan,  Hon.  M.  F..  statement  of   51 

Philadelphia  resolutions   105 

Plantations  of  Ireland  «   145,07,72 

Population  of  Ireland  l  139,12,17,08 

Population  of  Ulster   08,140  . 

President  Wilson  quoted   27,50,88,91-93,135 

President  Wilson,  14  points  accepted   39 


:r:zi. 


lot 


Pag?. 

Proclamation  of  Irish  Republic    147 

Pro-Germanism  alleged  42.  59. 6S.  81.  110. 133 

ProprietT  of  action  by  Consress   20 

26. 27. 39. 41.  43.  51. 32.  53. 95, 57.  S3.  104.  128.  133 
Protestant  leader?  of  Ireland  7. 65. 68. 87. 114 


Rainey.  Hon.  John  TV.,  statement  «»f   94 

Rantin  Hon.  Jeannette.  statement  of   90 

Reidy,  John   54 

Religions  census.  Ireland   68 

Religions  census.  Ulster  68. 146 

Religions  freedom,  guarantees   43. 85. 89. 146 

Reiisious  harmony,  feature  of  New  Ireland  64. 68 

Religions  toleration  in  Ireland  -7. 19. 22.  86. 114. 120 

Renunciation  act.  1782  67.142 

Revenue  of  Ireland   28. 43. 122. 139. 141-142 

Revenue  of  other  small  nations  43. 139 

Revolutionary  Army.  Irishmen  in  ,   31. 33. 38. 65, 107-108 

Revolutionarv  Army.  -  Lovalists  "  in  65. 116 

Reynolds.  P.  J.,  statement  of   133 

Rogers.  Hon.  John  Jacob,  presents  L»»weil  resolution   48 

Ryan.  Edward,  statement  of   SO 


s.  letters,  petitions,  and  resolutions  on 


-determination  in  Ireland,  procedure   S7 

^letermination  an  issue  in  the  great  war   87 

-determination  by  adult  suffrage   5 

ban.  Rt.  Rev.  Thomas  J-  letter  from   129 

rkey.  Rev.  Patrick  A.,  statement  of   130 

ridan.  Gen.  Phil,  willing  to  lead  Fenians   56 

l  Fein,  an  American  ideal   S4. 98 

i  Fein,  attitude  in  war-conserving  Gaelic  race   70 

&  Fein,  denies  authority  of  British  Parliament  87-^89. 126 

i  Fein  flac  entered  in  records   66 

i  Fein,  meanin?  of  89,  143 


tform   126 

icy  of   69.  70.  S4.  SS 

harles  B„  telegram  from   104 

honias  B..  resolution  from  New  York   18 

rish  man  power  70-71 

e  Senator,  for  Irish  independence   66 


Tagae.  Hon.  Peter  F..  statement  of   90 

Thompson.  James,  statement  of   24 

Tinkham.  Hon.  George  Holden.  statement  of   130 

U. 

~  Ulster.  Aspect  of  the  Irish  Issue"  116.121 

Ulster.  Catholics,  in.  proportion — 7  to  9   146 

Ulster.  Catholic  majority  in  province  outside  Belfast   146 

Ulster.  Irish  patriots  of  7.  28, 114 

Ulster.  M  Loyalists  ~  of   116 

Ulster  not  richest  province   116 

Ulster  one  of  the  six  counties  under  martial  law   S6 


158 


INDEX. 


Page. 

Ulster,  political  situation  in  -  07, 86, 117, 118, 14C 

Ulster,  population  and  religious  census  :  !_  68,116,146 

Ulster,  Protestanl  majority  of.  resident  In  Belfast  .   140 

Ulster,  rebellion  of  1914,  engineered  from  London   1 17-118 

Ulster,  safeguard  for  minority   43,44.80,140 

Ulster,  Orange  and  Nationalist  rebels  exchange  aid   86 

"  Ulster"  problems  of  America,  .1776,  and  of  Bohemia,  1918  110,120 

Unanimity   in   Ireland  s.  80  100 

Unconquerable  spirit  of  Ireland  114-115 

Union,  act  of  28,  01,  0;~>,  101.  112 

United  Spanish  War  Veterans. present  resolutions   190 

W. 

Why  America  should  intervene  10-17.  72-73 

Woman  suffrage  in-  Ireland   .  88 


X 


Date  Due 


_    •  "i  <^  o 

Hi 

v  is  ^ 

FEB  25 

1993 

I  O  &UUU 

MjO 

/  /  £UUJ 

Nut  t 

a  Anno 

8  2009 

■  -  - 

Bapst  Library 

Boston  College 
Chestnut  Hill,  Mass.  02167 


